BANCROFT    LIBRARY 


OREGON   AND   ELDORADO. 


OEEGON  AND  ELDOKADO ; 


OK, 


ROMANCE  OF  THE  RIVERS. 


BY 
THOMAS     BULFINCH, 

AUTHOR  OF  "THE  AGE  OF  FABLE,"  "THE  AGE  OF  CHIVALRY,"  ETC. 


BOSTON: 

J.  E.  TILTON  AND  COMPANY. 
1866. 


Entered,  according  to  Act  of  Congress,  in  the  year  1866,  by 

THOMAS    BULFINCH, 
In  the  Clerk's  Office  of  the  District  Court  of  the  District  of  Massachusetts. 


STEREOTYPED   BY  C.  J.  PETERS   AND   SON. 


PRINTED    BY    GEORGE    C.   RAND   AND   AVKRY. 


.;*  ••. 

mii 


PREFACE. 


WHEN  one  observes  attentively  the  maps  of 
South  and  North  America,  no  feature  appears 
more  striking  than  the  provision  which  Nature 
seems  to  have  made,  in  both  continents,  for  wa- 
ter-communication across  the  breadth  of  each. 
In  the  Northern  continent,  this  channel  of  com- 
munication is  formed  by  the  Missouri  and  Co- 
lumbia Kivers,  which  stretch  over  an  extent  of 
three  thousand  miles,  interrupted  only  by  the 
ridge  of  the  Rocky  Mountains.  In  the  Southern 
continent,  the  River  Amazon,  in  its  path  from 
the  Andes  to  the  sea,  traverses  a  course  of  thir- 
ty-three hundred  miles.  In  both  cases,  a  few 
hundred  miles  of  land-carriage  will  complete  the 
transit  from  ocean  to  ocean.  The  analogy  pre- 
sented in  the  length  and  direction  of  these  mag- 
nificent water-pathways  is  preserved  in  their 
history.  A  series  of  romantic  adventures  attach- 


x  PREFACE. 

es  to  each.  I  indulge  the  hope,  that  young  read- 
ers who  have  so  favorably  received  my  former  at- 
tempts to  amuse  and  instruct  them,  in  my  several 
works  reviving  the  fabulous  legends  of  remote 
ages,  will  find  equally  attractive  these  true  nar- 
ratives of  bold  adventure,  whose  date  is  compara- 
tively recent.  Moreover,  their  scenes  are  laid,  in 
the  one  instance,  in  our  own  country;  and,  in  the 
other,  in  that  great  and  rising  empire  of  Brazil 
to  which  our  distinguished  naturalist,  Prof.  Agas- 
siz,  has  gone  on  a  pilgrimage  of  science.  It  will 
enable  us  better  to  appreciate  the  discoveries  and 
observations  which  the  professor  will  lay  before 
us  on  his  return,  to  know  something  beforehand 
of  the  history  and  peculiarities  of  the  region  which 
is  the  scene  of  his  labors  ;  and,  on  the  other  hand, 
the  route  across  the  North-American  continent, 
to  which  the  first  part  of  the  volume  relates,  de- 
rives increased  interest,  at  this  time,  from  the 
fact  that  it  nearly  corresponds  to  the  route  of 
the  contemplated  Northern  Pacific  Railroad. 

BOSTON,  June,  1866.  T.  B. 


CONTENTS. 


OREGON. 


CHAPTER   I. 
DISCOVERY  OF  COLUMBIA  RIVER 


CHAPTER  IL 
LEWIS  AND  CLARKE 14 

CHAPTER  IE. 
THE  Sioux 23 

CHAPTER  IV. 
SUMMARY  OF  TRAVEL  TO  WINTER-QUARTERS 83 

CHAPTER  V. 
INDIAN  TRIBES .45 

• 

CHAPTER  VI. 

THE  MARCH  RESUMED 67 

CHAPTER  VII. 

THE  JOURNEY  CONTINUED 85 

xi 


xii  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER  VIII. 

THE  SOURCES  OF  THE  MISSOURI  AND  COLUMBIA      ....      97 

* 

CHAPTER  IX. 
THE  PARTY  IN  THE  BOATS          ........    10? 


CHAPTER  X. 
THE  DESCENT  OF  THE  COLUMBIA       .......    120 

CHAPTER  XI. 
CLARKE'S  RIVER  ...........    131 

CHAPTER  XII. 

KOOSKOOSKEE  RlVER      ..........      147 

CHAPTER  XHI. 
WINTER-QUARTERS       ........        .  176 

CHAPTER  XIV. 
A  NEW  YEAR        ...........    187 

CHAPTER  XV. 
WINTER  LIFR        ...........    197 

CHAPTER  XVI. 
THE  RETURN         ...........    210 

CHAPTER  XVH. 
THE  ROCKY  MOUNTAINS       .........    230 

CHAPTER  XVHI. 
CAPT.  CLARKE'S  ROUTE  DOWN  THE  YELLOWSTONE  .    241 


CONTENTS.  xiii 


ELDORADO. 


CHAPTER  I. 
THE  DISCOVERY 255 

CHAPTER  II. 
ORELLANA  DESCENDS  THE  RIVER 265 

'  CHAPTER  HI. 
ORELLANA'S  ADVENTURE  CONTINUED         .       *       .       ...       .    275 

CHAPTER  IV. 
SIR  WALTER  RALEIGH 285 

CHAPTER  V. 
RALEIGH'S  FIRST  EXPEDITION 293 

CHAPTER  VI. 
RALEIGH'S  ADVENTURES  CONTINUED 307 

CHAPTER  VTI. 
RALEIGH'S  SECOND  EXPEDITION 316 

CHAPTER  VIII. 
THE  FRENCH  PHILOSOPHERS  .    326 


xiv  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER  IX. 

MADAME  GODIN'S  VOYAGE  DOWN  THE  AMAZON       ....    839 

• 

"  CHAPTER  X. 
MADAME  GODIN'S  VOYAGE  CONTINUED 849 

CHAPTER  XL 
HERNDON'S  EXPEDITION 861 

CHAPTER  XIL 
HERNDON'S  EXPEDITION  CONTINUED f  .       .    373 

CHAPTER  XIII. 
HERNDON'S  EXPEDITION  CONTINUED   .......    887 

CHAPTER  XIV. 
HERNDON'S  EXPEDITION  CONCLUDED  .       .       ,       .  %  .       .        .    396 

CHAPTER  XV. 
LATEST  EXPLORATIONS 404 

CHAPTER  XVI. 
THE  NATURALIST  ON  THE  AMAZON     .......    427 

CHAPTER  XVIL 
ANIMATED  NATURE      ...»  .446 


OREGON. 


0  E  E  G  0  K 


CHAPTER    I. 

DISCOVERY    OF    COLUMBIA    RIVER. 

A  FEW  years  ago,  there  was  still  standing  in 
Bowdoin  Square,  Boston,  opposite  the  Revere 
House,  an  ancient  mansion,  since  removed  to  make 
room  for  the  granite  range  called  the  Coolidge  Build 
ing.  In  that  mansion,  then  neither  old  nor  inelegant, 
but,  on  the  contrary,  having  good  pretensions  to  rank 
among  the  principal  residences  of  the  place,  was  as- 
sembled, in  the  year  1787,  a  group,  consisting  of  the 
master  of  the  mansion,  Dr.  Bulfinch,  his  only  son 
Charles,  and  Joseph  Barrell,  their  neighbor,  an  emi- 
nent merchant  of  Boston.  The  conversation  turned 
upon  the  topic  of  the  day,  —  the  voyages  and  discov- 
eries of  Capt.  Cook,  the  account  of  which  had  lately 
been  published.  The  brilliant  achievements  of  Capt. 
Cook,  his  admirable  qualities,  and  his  sad  fate  (slain 
by  the  chance  stroke  of  a  Sandwich-Islander,  in  a  sud- 


2  OREGON. 

den  brawl  which  arose  between  the  sailors  and  the 
natives),  —  these  formed  the  current  of  the  conversa- 
tion ;  till  at  last  it  changed,  and  turned  more  upon  the 
commercial  aspects  of  the  subject.  Mr.  Barrell  was 
particularly  struck  with  what  Cook  relates  of  the 
abundance  of  valuable  furs  offered  by  the  natives  of 
the  country  in  exchange  for  beads,  knives,  and  other 
trifling  commodities  valued  by  them.  The  remark  of 
Capt.  Cook  respecting  the  sea-otter  was  cited :  — 

"  This  animal  abounds  here  :  the  fur  is  softer  and 
finer  than  that  of  any  other  we  know  of;  and  therefore 
the  discovery  of  this  part  of  the  continent,  where  so 
valuable  an  article  of  commerce  may  be  met  with, 
cannot  be  a  matter  of  indifference."  He  adds  in  a  note, 
"  The -sea-otter  skins  are  sold  by  the  Russians  to  the 
Chinese  at  from  sixteen  to  twenty  pounds  each." 

Mr.  Barrell  remarked,  "  There  is  a  rich  harvest  to 
be  reaped  there  by  those  who  shall  first  go  in."  The 
idea  thus  suggested  was  followed  out  in  future  con- 
versations at  the  doctor's  fireside,  admitting  other  con- 
genial spirits  to  the  discussion,  and  resulted  in  the 
equipping  of  an  expedition  consisting  of  two  vessels, 
the  ship  "  Columbia"  and  sloop  "Washington,"  to  make 
the  proposed  adventure.  The  partners  in  the  enter- 
prise were  Joseph  Barrell,  Samuel  Brown,  Charles  Bui- 


DISCOVERY   OF    COLUMBIA    RIVER.  3 

finch,  John  Derby,  Crowell  Hatch,  and  J.  M.  Pintard. 
So  important  was  the  expedition  deemed  by  the  adven- 
turers themselves,  that  they  caused  a  medal  to  be 
struck,  bearing  on  one  side  a  representation  of  the  two 
vessels  under  sail,  and  on  the  other  the  names  of  the 
parties  to  the  enterprise.  Several  copies  of  this  med- 
al were  made  both  in  bronze  and  silver,  and  distri- 
buted to  public  bodies  and  distinguished  individuals. 
One  of  these  medals  lies  before  the  writer  as  he  pens 
these  lines.  A  representation  is  subjoined :  — 


The  expedition  was  also  provided  with  sea-letters, 
issued  by  the  Federal  Government  agreeably  to  a  re- 
solution of  Congress,  and  with  passports  from  the  State 
of  Massachusetts  ;  and  they  received  letters  from  the 
Spanish  minister  plenipotentiary  in  the  United  States, 
recommending  them  to  the  attention  of  the  authorities 
of  his  nation  on  the  Pacific  coast. 


4  OREGON. 

The  "  Columbia  "  was  commanded  by  John  Kendrick, 
to  whom  was  intrusted  the  general  control  of  the 
expedition.  The  master  of  the  "  Washington  "  was 
Robert  Gray. 

The  two  vessels  sailed  together  from  Boston  on  the 
30th  of  September,  1787 :  thence  they  proceeded  to 
the  Cape  Yerde  Islands,  and  thence  to  the  Falkland 
Islands,  in  each  of  which  groups  they  procured  re- 
freshments. In  January,  1788,  they  doubled  Cape 
Horn ;  immediately  after  which  they  were  separated 
during  a  violent  gale.  The  "  Washington,"  continuing 
her  course  through  the  Pacific,  made  the  north-west 
coast  in  August,  near  the  46th  degree  of  latitude. 
Here  Capt.  Gray  thought  he  perceived  indications  of 
the  mouth  of  a  river ;  but  he  was  unable  to  ascertain 
the  fact,  in  consequence  of  his  vessel  having  grounded, 
and  been  attacked  by  the  savages,  who  killed  one  of 
his  men,  and  wounded  the  mate.  But  she  escaped 
without  further  injury,  and,  on  the  17th  of  September, 
reached  Nootka  Sound,  which  had  been  agreed  upon 
as  the  port  of  re-union  in  case  of  separation.  The  "  Co- 
lumbia "  did  not  enter  the  sound  until  some  days 
afterward. 

The  two  vessels  spent  their  winter  in  the  sound ; 
where  the  "  Columbia"  also  lay  during  the  following 


DISCOVERY     OF    COLUMBIA    RIVER.  5 

summer,  collecting  furs,  while  Capt.  Gray,  in  the 
"  Washington,"  explored  the  adjacent  waters.  On  his 
return  to  Nootka,  it  was  agreed  upon  between  the 
two  captains  that  Kendrick  should  take  command  of 
the  sloop,  and  remain  on  the  coast,  while  Gray,  in  the 
"Columbia,"  should  carry  to  Canton  all  the  furs 
which  had  been  collected  by  both  vessels.  This  was 
accordingly  done ;  and  Gray  arrived  on  the  6th  of  De- 
cember at  Canton,  where  he  sold  his  furs,  and  took  in 
a  cargo  of  tea,  with  which  he  entered  Boston  on  the 
10th  of  August,  1790,  having  carried  the  flag  of  the 
United  States  for  the  first  time  round  the  world. 

Kendrick,  immediately  on  parting  with  the  "  Colum- 
bia," proceeded  with  the  "  Washington  "  to  the  Strait 
of  Fuca,  through  which  he  sailed,  in  its  whole  length, 
to  its  issue  in  the  Pacific,  in  lat.  51.  To  him  belongs 
the  credit  of  ascertaining  that  Nootka  and  the  parts 
adjacent  are  an  island,  to  which  the  name  of  Vancou- 
ver's Island  has  since  been  given,  which  it  now  re- 
tains. Vancouver  was  a  British  commander  who  fol- 
lowed in  the  track  of  the  Americans  a  year  later. 
The  injustice  done  to  Kendrick  by  thus  robbing  him 
of  the  credit  of  his  discovery  is  but  one  of  many  simi- 
lar instances ;  the  greatest  of  all  being  that  by  which 


6  OREGON. 

our  continent  itself  bears  the  name,  not  of  Columbus, 
but  of  a  subsequent  navigator. 

Capt.  Kendrick,  during  the  time  occupied  by  Gray 
in  his  return  voyage,  besides  collecting  furs,  engaged 
in  various  speculations ;  one  of  which  was  the  collec- 
tion, and  transportation  to  China,  of  the  odoriferous 
wood  called  "  sandal,"  which  grows  in  many  of  the 
tropical  islands  of  the  Pacific,  and  is  in  great  demand 

throughout  the  Celestial  Empire,  for  ornamental  fab- 

} 

rics,  and  also  for  medicinal  purposes.  Vancouver  pro- 
nounced this  scheme  chimerical ;  but  experience  has 
shown  that  it  was  founded  on  just  calculations,  and  the 
business  has  ever  since  been  prosecuted  with  advan- 
tage, especially  by  Americans. 

Another  of  Kendrick' s  speculations  has  not  hitherto 
produced  any  fruit.  In  the  summer  of  1791,  he  pur- 
chased from  Maquinna,  Wicanish,  and  other  Indian 
chiefs,  several  large  tracts  of  land  near  Nootka 
Sound,  for  which  he  obtained  deeds,  duly  marked  by 
those  personages,  and  witnessed  by  the  officers  and 
men  of  the  "  Washington."  Attempts  were  afterwards 
made  by  the  owners  of  the  vessel  to  sell  these  lands 
in  London,  but  no  purchasers  were  found ;  and  appli- 
cations have  since  been  addressed  by  the  legal  repre- 
sentatives of  the  owners  to  the  Government  of  the 


DISCOVERY   OF    COLUMBIA    RIVER.  1 

United   States   for  a   confirmation  of  the  title,  but 
hitherto  without  success. 

Capt.  Kendrick  lost  his  life  by  a  singular  acci- 
dent. In  exchanging  salutes  with  a  Spanish  vessel 
which  they  met  at  the  Sandwich  Islands,  the  wad  of 
the  gun  of  the  Spaniard  struck  Capt.  Kendrick  as  he 
stood  on  the  deck  of  his  vessel,  conspicuous  in  his 
dress-coat  and  cocked  hat  as  commander  of  the  expe- 
dition. It  was  instantly  fatal. 

The  ship  "  Columbia"  returned  to  Boston  from  Can- 
ton under  the  command  of  Gray,  as  already  stated, 
arriving  on  the  10th  of  August,  1790  ;  but  the  cargo 
of  Chinese  articles  brought  by  her  was  insufficient  to 
cover  the  expenses  of  her  voyage  :  nevertheless  her 
owners  determined  to  persevere  in  the  enterprise,  and 
refitted  the  ship  for  a  new  voyage  of  the  same  kind. 

The  "  Columbia,"  under  her  former  captain,  Gray, 
left  Boston,  on  her  second  voyage,  on  the  28th  of  Sep- 
tember, 1790,  and,  without  the  occurrence  of  any 
thing  worthy  of  note,  arrived  at  Clyoquot,  near  the 
entrance  of  Fuca's  Strait,  .on  the  5th  of  June,  1791. 
There,  and  in  the  neighboring  waters,  she  remained 
through  the  summer  and  winter  following,  engaged  in 
trading  and  exploring.  In  the  spring  of  1792,  Gray 
took  his  departure  in  the  ship,  on  a  cruise  southward, 


8  OREGON. 

along  the  coast,  bent  on  ascertaining  the  truth  of  ap- 
pearances which  had  led  him  in  the  former  voyage 
to  suspect  the  existence  of  a  river  discharging  its  wa- 
ters at  or  about  the  latitude  of  46  degrees.  During 
his  cruise,  he  met  the  English  vessels  commanded  by 
Commodore  Vancouver.  "  On  the  29th  of  April/' 
Vancouver  writes  in  his  journal,  "  at  four  o'clock,  a 
sail  was  discovered  to  the  westward,  standing  in  shore. 
This  was  a  very  great  novelty,  not  having  seen  any 
vessel  but  our  consort  during  the  last  eight  months. 
She  soon  hoisted  American  colors,  and  fired  a  gun  to 
leeward.  At  six,  we  spoke  her.  She  proved  to  be  the 
ship  i  Columbia,'  commanded  by  Capt.  Robert  Gray, 
belonging  to  Boston,  whence  she  had  been  absent  nine- 
teen months.  I  sent  two  of  my  officers  on  board  to 
acquire  such  information  as  might  be  serviceable  in 
our  future  operations.  Capt.  Gray  informed  them  of 
his  having  been  off  the  mouth  of  a  river,  in  the  lati- 
tude of  46  degrees  10  minutes,  for  nine  days  ;  but  the 
outset  or  reflux  was  so  strong  as  to  prevent  his  enter- 
ing." 

To  this  statement  of  Capt.  Gray,  Vancouver  gave 
little  credit.  He  remarks,  "  I  was  thoroughly  per- 
suaded, as  were  also  most  persons  of  observation  on 
board,  that  we  could  not  have  passed  any  safe  naviga- 


DISCOVERY    OF    COLUMBIA    RIVER. 

ble  opening,  harbor,  or  place  of  security  for  shipping, 
from  Cape  Mendocino  to  Fuca's  Strait." 

After  parting  with  the  English  ships,  Gray  sailed 
along  the  coast  of  the  continent  southward ;  and  on 
the  7th  of  May,  1792,  he  "  saw  an  entrance  which 
had  a  very  good  appearance  of  a  harbor."  Passing 
through  this  entrance,  he  found  himself  in  a  bay, 
"  well  sheltered  from  the  sea  by  long  sand-bars  and 
spits,"  where  he  remained  three  days  trading  with 
the  natives,  and  then  resumed  his  voyage,  bestowing 
on  the  place  thus  discovered  the  name  of  Bulfinch's 
Harbor,  in  honor  of  one  of  the  owners  of  his  ship. 
This  is  now  known  as  Gray's  Harbor. 

At  daybreak  on  the  llth,  after  leaving  Bulfinch's 
Harbor,  Gray  observed  "  the  entrance  of  his  desired 
port,  bearing  east-south-east,  distant  six  leagues ;  and 
running  into  it  with  all  sail*  set,  between  the  break- 
ers, he  anchored  at  one  o'clock  in  a  large  river  of 
fresh  water,  ten  miles  above  its  mouth.  At  this  spot 
he  remained  three  days,  engaged  in  trading  with  the 
natives,  and  filling  his  casks  with  water  ;  and  then 
sailed  up  the  river  about  twelve  miles  along  its 
northern  shore,  where,  finding  that  he  could  proceed 
no  farther  from  having  taken  the  wrong  channel,  he 
again  came  to  anchor.  On  the  20th,  he  re  crossed  the 


10  OREGON. 

bar  at  the  mouth  of  the  river,  and  regained  the  Pa- 
cific. 

On  leaving  the  river,  Gray  gave  it  the  name  of  his 
ship,  the  Columbia,  which  it  still  bears.  He  called 
the  southern  point  of  land,  at  the  entrance,  Cape 
Adams ;  and  the  northern,  Cape  Hancock.  The  for- 
mer of  these  names  retains  its  place  in  the  maps,  the 
latter  does  not ;  the  promontory  being  known  as  Cape 
Disappointment,  —  a  name  it  received  from  Lieut. 
Meares,  an  English  navigator,  who,  like  Capt.  Gray, 
judged  from  appearances  that  there  was  the  outlet  of 
a  river 'at  that  point,  but  failed  to  find  it,  and  recorded 
his  failure  in  the  name  he  assigned  to  the  conspicuous 
headland  which  marked  the  place  of  his  fruitless 
search. 

NOTE. 

As  the  discovery  of  Columbia  River  was  an  event  of  historical 
importance,  the  reader  will  perhaps  be  gratified  to  see  it  as  re- 
corded in  the  words  of  Capt.  Gray  himself,  copied  from  his  log- 
book as  follows :  — 

"  May  11  (1792),  at  eight,  P.M.,  the  entrance  of  Bulfinch's 
Harbor  bore  north,  distance  four  miles.  Sent  up  the  main-top- 
gallant yard,  and  set  all  sail.  At  four,  A.M.,  saw  the  entrance 
of  our  desired  port,  bearing  east-south-east,  distance  six  leagues ; 
in  steering  sails,  and  hauled  our  wind  in  shore.  At  eight, 
A.M.,  being  a  little  to  windward  of  the  entrance  of  the  harbor, 


DISCOVERY   OF    COLUMBIA    RIVER.  11 

From  the  mouth  of  Columbia  River,  Gray  sailed  to 
Nootka  Sound,  where  he  communicated  his  recent 
discoveries  to  the  Spanish  commandant,  Quadra;  to 
w.hom  he  also  gave  charts  and  descriptions  of  Bul- 
finch's  Harbor,  and  of  the  mouth  of  the  Columbia. 
He  departed  for  Canton  in  September,  and  thence 
sailed  to  the  United  States. 

The  voyages  of  Kendrick  and  Gray  were  not  profit- 
able to  the  adventurers,  yet  not  fruitless  of  benefit  to 
their  country.  They  opened  the  way  to  subsequent 
enterprises  in  the  same  region,  which  were  eminently 
successful.  And,  in  another  point  of  view,  these  ex- 
peditions were  fraught  with  consequences  of  the  ut- 

bore  away,  and  ran  in  east-north-east  between  the  .'breakers,  hav- 
ing from  five  to  seven  fathoms  of  water.  When  we  were  over 
the  bar,  we  found  this  to  be  a  large  river  of  fresh  water,  up  which 
we  steered.  Many  canoes  came  alongside.  At  one,  P.M.,  came 
to,  with  the  small  bower  in  ten  fathoms  black  and  white  sand. 
The  entrance  between  the  bars  bore  west-south-west,  distant  ten 
miles  ;  the  north  side  of  the  river  a  half-mile  distant  from  the 
ship,  the  south  side  of  the  same  two  and  a  half  miles  dis- 
tance ;  a  village  on  the  north  side  of  the  river,  west  by  north, 
distant  three-quarters  of  a  mile.  Vast  numbers  of  natives  came 
alongside.  People  employed  in  pumping  the  salt  water  out  of 
our  water-casks,  in  order  to  fill  with  fresh,  while  the  ship  floated 
in.  So  ends." 


12  OREGON. 

most  importance.  Gray's  discovery  of  Columbia  River 
was  the  point  most  relied  upon  by  our  negotiators  in 
a  subsequent  era  for  establishing  the  claim  of  the 
United  States  to  ftie  part  of  the  continent  through 
which  that  river  flows  ;  and  it  is  in  a  great  measure 
owing  to  that  discovery  that  the  growing  State  of 
Oregon  is  now  a  part  of  the  American  Republic. 

From  the  date  of  the  discovery  of  Columbia  River 
to  the^war  of  1812,  the  direct  trade  between  the  Ame- 
rican coast  and  China  was  almost  entirely  in  the  hands 
of  the  citizens  of  the  United  States.  The  British 
merchants  were  restrained  from  pursuing  it  by  the 
opposition  of  their  East-India  Company ;  the  Russians 
were  not  admitted  into  Chinese  ports  ;  and  few  ships 
of  any  other  nation  were  seen  in  that  part  of  the 
ocean.  The  trade  was  prosecuted  by  men  whose 
names  are  still  distinguished  among  us  as  those  of  the 
master-spirits  of  American  commerce,  —  the  Thorn- 
dikes,  the  Perkinses,  Lambs,  Sturgis,  Gushing,  and 
others  of  Boston,  Astor  and  others  of  New  York.  The 
greater  number  of  the  vessels  sent  from  the  United 
States  were  fine  ships  or  brigs  laden  with  valuable 
cargoes  of  West-India  productions,  British  manufac- 
tured articles,  and  French,  Italian,  and  Spanish  wines 
and  spirits ;  and  the  owners  were  men  of  large 


DISCOVERY   OF    COLUMBIA    RIVER.  13 

capital  and  high  reputation  in  the  commercial  world, 
some  of  whom  were  able  to  compete  with  the  British 
companies,  and  even  to  control  their  movements. 

During  all  this  period,  though  constant  accessions 
were  made  to  the  knowledge  of  the  coast  by  means 
of  commercial  adventure,  the  interior  of  the  continent, 
from  the  Mississippi  to  the  ocean,  remained  unknown. 
The  intercourse  of  the  people  of  the  United  States 
with  the  native  tribes  was  restricted  by  several 
causes.  One  was  the  possession  of  Louisiana  by  the 
Spaniards ;  another,  the  retention  by  the  British  of 
several  important  posts  south  of  the  Great  Lakes, 
within  the  acknowledged  territory  of  the  Union.  At 
length,  by  the  treaty  of  1794  between  Great  Britain 
and  the  United  States,  those  posts  were  given  up  to 
the  Americans;  and  by  treaty  with  France,  in  1803, 
Louisiana,  which  had  come  into  possession  of  that 
power  in  1800,  was  ceded  to  the  United  States. 
From  this  period,  the  Government  and  people  of  the 
United  States  ceased  to  be  indifferent  to  the  immense 
and  important  region  whose  destinies  were  committed 
to  them ;  and  the  ensuing  narrative  will  relate  the 
first  attempt  made  by  national  authority  to  occupy 
and  explore  the  country. 


CHAPTER    II. 

LEWIS    AND     CLARKE. 

IN  the  year  1786,  John  Ledyard  of  Connecticut, 
who  had  been  with  Capt.  Cook  in  his  voyage  of 
discovery  to  the  north-west  coast  of  America  in  1776- 
1780,  was  in  Paris,  endeavoring  to  engage  a  mercan- 
tile company  in  the  fur-trade  of  that  coast.  He  had 
seen,  as  he  thought,  unequalled  opportunities  for  lu- 
crative traffic  in  the  exchange  of  the  furs  of  that  coun- 
try for  the  silks  and  teas  of  China.  But  his  represen- 
tations were  listened  to  with  incredulity  by  the  cau- 
tious merchants  of  Europe,  and  he  found  it  impossible 
to  interest  any  so  far  as  to  induce  them  to  fit  out  an 
expedition  for  the  object  proposed. 

Disappointed  and  needy,  he  applied  for  advice  and 
assistance  to  Mr.  Jefferson,  at  that  time  the  American 
minister  at  the  court  of  France.  Ledyard  had  no 
views  of  pecuniary  gain  in  the  contemplated  enter- 
prise :  he  sought  only  an  opportunity  of  indulging  his 

14 


LEWIS   AND    CLARKE.  15 

love  of  adventure  by  exploring  regions  at  that  time 
unknown.  Mr.  Jefferson,  as  the  guardian  of  his  coun- 
try's interests  and  the  friend  of  science,  was  warmly 
interested  in  any  scheme  which  contemplated  the 
opening  of  the  vast  interior  regions  of  the  American 
continent  to  the  occupancy  of  civilized  man.  Since 
it  was  impossible  to  engage  mercantile  adventurers  to 
fit  out  an  expedition  by  sea,  Mr.  Jefferson  proposed  to 
Ledyard  that  he  should  go  as  a  traveller,  by  land, 
through  the  Russian  territories,  as  far  as  the  eastern 
coast  of  the  continent  of  Asia,  and  from  thence  get 
such  conveyance  as  he  could  to  the  neighboring  coast 
of  America,  and  thus  reach  the  spot  where  his  main 
journey  was  to  begin.  Ledyard  eagerly  embraced 
the  proposal.  Permission  was  obtained  from  the  Em- 
press Catharine  of  Russia,  and  the  enterprising  trav- 
eller, in  December,  1786,  set  forth.  He  traversed  Den- 
mark and  Sweden ;  passed  round  the  head  of  the  Gulf 
of  Bothnia,  after  an  unsuccessful  attempt  to  cross  it 
on  the  ice ;  and  reached  St.  Petersburg  in  March, 
1787,  without  money,  shoes,  or  stockings,  having  gone 
this  immense  journey  on  foot  in  an  arctic  winter.  At 
St.  Petersburg  he  obtained  notice,  money  to  the 
amount  of  twenty  guineas,  and  permission  to  accom- 
pany a  convoy  of  stores  to  Yakoutsk,  in  Siberia. 


16  OREGON. 

But,  for  some  unexplained  reason,  he  was  arrested  at 
that  place  by  order  of  the  empress,  and  conveyed 
back  to  Europe  ;  being  cautioned,  on  his  release,  not 
again  to  set  foot  within  the  Russian  territories,  under 
penalty  of  death.  This  harsh  treatment  is  supposed 
to  have  arisen  from  the  jealousy  of  the  Russian  fur- 
traders,  who  feared  that  Ledyard's  proceedings  would 
rouse  up  rivals  in  their  trade. 

Mr.  Jefferson  did  not,  upon  this  disappointment, 
abandon  the  idea  of  an  exploration  of  the  interior  of 
the  American  continent.  At  his  suggestion,  the 
American  Philosophical  Society  of  Philadelphia  took 
measures,  in  1792,  to  send  suitable  persons  to  make  a 
similar  transit  of  the  continent  in  the  opposite  direc- 
tion; that  is,  by  ascending  the  Missouri,  and  descend- 
ing the  Columbia.  Nothing  was  effected,  however, 
at  that  time,  except  awakening  the  attention  of  Capt. 
Meriwether  Lewis,  a  young  officer  in  the  American 
army,  a  neighbor  and  relative  of  Gen.  Washington. 
He  eagerly  sought  to  be  employed  to  make  the  con- 
templated journey. 

In  1803,  Mr.  Jefferson,  being  then  President  of  the 
United  States,  proposed  to  Congress  to  send  an  ex- 
ploring party  to  trace  the  Missouri  to  its  source;  to 
cross  the  highlands,  and  follow  the  best  water  commu- 


LEWIS   AND    CLARKE.  17 

i 

nication  which  might  offer  itself,  to  the  Pacific  Ocean. 
Congress  approved  the  proposal,  and  voted  a  sum  of 
money  to  carry  it  into  execution.  Capt.  Lewis,  who 
had  then  been  two  years  with  Mr.  Jefferson  as  his  pri- 
vate secretary,  immediately  renewed  his  solicitations 
to  have  the  direction  of  the  expedition.  Mr.  Jeffer- 
son had  now  had  opportunity  of  knowing  him  inti- 
mately, and  believed  him  to  be  brave,  persevering,  fa- 
miliar with  the  Indian  character  and  customs,  habit- 
uated to  the  hunting  life,  honest,  and  of  sound  judg- 
ment. He  trusted  that  he  would  be  careful  of  those 
committed  to  his  charge,  yet  steady  in  the  mainte- 
nance of  discipline.  On  receiving  his  appointment, 
Capt.  Lewis  repaired  to  Philadelphia,  and  placed  him- 
self under  its  distinguished  professors,  with  a  view  to 
acquire  familiarity  with  the  nomenclature  of  the  natu- 
ral sciences.  He  selected,  as  his  companion  in  the 
proposed  expedition,  William  Clarke,  a  brother-officer, 
known  and  esteemed  by  him. 

While  these  things  were  going  on,  the  treaty  with 
France  was  concluded,  by  which  the  country  of 
Louisiana  was  ceded  to  the  United  States.  This 
event,  which  took  place  in  1803,  greatly  increased  the 
interest  felt  by  the  people  of  the  United  States  in  the 
proposed  expedition. 


18  OREGON. 

In  the  spring  of  1804,  the  preparations  being  com- 
pleted, the  explorers  commenced  their  route.  The 
party  consisted  of  nine  young  men  from  Kentucky, 
fourteen  soldiers  of  the  United-States  army  who  vol- 
unteered their  services,  two  French  watermen,  an 
interpreter,  a  hunter,  and  a  black  servant  of  Capt. 
Clarke.  In  addition  to  these,  a  further  force  of  fifteen 
men  attended  on  the  commencement  of  the  expedition 
to  secure  safety  during  the  transit  through  some  In- 
dian tribes  whose  hostility  was  apprehended.  The 
necessary  stores  were  divided  into  seven  bales  and 
one  box,  the  latter  containing  a  small  portion  of  each 
article  in  case  of  a  loss  of  any  one  of  the  bales.  The 
stores  consisted  of  clothing,  working  tools,  ammuni- 
tion, and  other  articles  of  prime  necessity.  To  these 
were  added  fourteen  bales  and  one  box  of  Indian  pre- 
sents, composed  of  richly  laced  coats  and  other  arti- 
cles of  dress,  medals,  flags,  knives,  and  tomahawks  for 
the  chiefs  ;  ornaments  of  different  kinds,  particularly 
beads,  looking-glasses,  handkerchiefs,  paints,  and  gen- 
erally such  articles  as  were  deemed  best  calculated 
for  the  taste  of  the  Indians.  The  company  embarked 
on  board  of  three  boats.  The  first  was  a  keel-boat, 
fifty-five  feet  long,  carrying  one  large  square  sail  and 
twenty-two  oars.  A  deck  of  ten  feet,  at  each  end, 


LEWIS   AND    CLARKE.  19 

formed  a  forecastle  and  cabin.  This  was  accompanied 
by  two  open  boats  of  six  oars.  Two  horses  were  to 
be  led  along  the  banks  of  the  river,  for  bringing  home 
game,  or  hunting  in  case  of  scarcity. 

The  narrative  of  the  expedition  was  written  by  the 
commanders  from  day  to  day,  and  published  after 
their  return.  We  shall  tell  the  story  of  their  adven- 
tures nearly  in  the  language  of  their  own  journal, 
with  such  abridgments  as  our  plan  renders  neces- 
sary. 

May  14,  1804.  —  All  the  preparations  being  com- 
pleted, they  left  their  encampment  this  day.  The 
character  of  the  river  itself  was  the  most  interesting 
object  of  examination  for  the  first  part  of  their  voy- 
age. Having  advanced,  in  two  months,  about  four 
hundred  and  fifty  miles,  they  write  as  follows :  "  The 

* 

ranges  of  hills  on  opposite  sides  of  the  river  are  twelve 
or  fifteen  miles  apart,  rich  plains  and  prairies,  with 
the  river,  occupying  the  intermediate  space,  partially 
covered  near  the  river  with  cotton-wood  or  Balm-of- 
Gilead  poplar.  The  whole  lowland  between  the 
parallel  ranges  of  hills  seems  to  have  been  formed  of 
mud  of  the  river,  mixed  with  sand  and  clay.  The 
sand  of  the  neighboring  banks,  added  to  that  brought 
down  by  the  stream,  forms  sand-bars,  projecting  into 


20  OREGON. 

the  river.  These  drive  the  stream  to  the  opposite 
bank,  the  loose  texture  of  which  it  undermines,  and 
at  length  deserts  its  ancient  bed  for  a  new  passage. 
It  is  thus  that  the  banks  of  the  Missouri  are  con- 
stantly falling  in,  and  the  river  changing  its  bed. 

"  On  one  occasion,  the  party  encamped  on  a  sand- 
bar in  the  river.  Shortly  after  midnight,  the  sleepers 
were  startled  by  the  sergeant  on  guard  crying  out 
that  the  sand-bar  was  sinking :  and  the  alarm  was 
timely  given  ;  for  scarcely  had  they  got  off  with  the 
boats  before  the  bank  under  which  they  had  been 
lying  fell  in ;  and,  by  the  time  the  opposite  shore  was 
reached,  the  ground  on  which  they  had  been  en- 
camped sunk  also. 

"  We  had  occasion  here  to  observe  the  process  of 
the  undermining  of  these  hills  by  the  Missouri.  The 
first  attacks  seem  to  be  made  on  the  hills  which  over- 
hang the  river.  As  soon  as  the  violence  of  the  cur- 
rent destroys  the  grass  at  the  foot  of  them,  the  whole 
texture  appears  loosened,  and  the  ground  dissolves, 
and  mixes  with  the  water.  At  one  point,  a  part  of 
the  cliff,  nearly  three-quarters  of  a  mile  in  length,  and 
about  two  hundred  feet  in  height,  had  fallen  into  the 
river.  As  the  banks  are  washed  away,  the  trees  fall 
in,  and  the  channel  becomes  filled  with  buried  logs." 


LEWIS  AND    CLARKE.  21 

RIVER    SCENERY. 

"July  12.  — We  remained  to-day  for  the  purpose  of 
making  lunar  observations.  Capt.  Clarke  sailed  a  few 
miles  up  the  Namaha  River,  and  landed  on  a  spot 
where  he  found  numerous  artificial  mounds. 


NOTE. 

A  late  traveller,  Rev.  Samuel  Parker,  speaks  thus  of  these 
mounds:  "  The  mounds,  which  some  have  called  the  work  of 
unknown  generations  of  men,  were  scattered  here  in  all  varieties 
of  form  and  magnitude,  thousands  in  number.  Some  of  them 
were  conical,  some  elliptical,  some  square,  and  some  parallelo- 
grams. One  group  attracted  my  attention  particularly.  They 
were  twelve  in  number,  of  conical  form,  with  their  bases  joined, 
and  twenty  or  thirty  feet  high.  They  formed  two-thirds  of  a 
circle,  with  an  area  of  two  hundred  feet  in  diameter.  If  these 
were  isolated,  who  would  not  say  they  were  artificial  ?  But, 
when  they  are  only  a  group  among  a  thousand  others,  who  will 
presume  to  say  they  all  are  the  work  of  man  ?  .  .  . 

"  It  is  said  by  those  who  advocate  the  belief  that  they  are  the 
work  of  ancient  nations ;  that  they  present  plain  evidence  of  this 
in  the  fact  that  they  contain  human  bones,  articles  of  pottery, 
and  the  like.  That  some  of  them  have  been  used  for  burying- 
places,  is  undoubtedly  true  ;  but  may  it  not  be  questioned  whe- 
ther they  were  made,  or  only  selected,  for  burying-places  ?,  No 
one  who  has  ever  seen  the  thousands  and  ten  thousands 
scattered  through  the  Valley  of  the  Mississippi  will  be  so  credu- 
lous as  to  believe  that  a  hundredth  part  of  them  were  the  work 
of  man." 


22  OREGON. 

"  From  the  top  of  the  highest  mound,  a  delightful 
prospect  presented  itself,  —  the  lowland  of  the  Mis- 
souri covered  with  an  undulating  grass  nearly  five 
feet  high,  gradually  rising  into  a  second  plain,  where 
rich  weeds  and  flowers  were  interspersed  with  copses 
of  the  Osage  plum.  Farther  back  from  the  river 
were  seen  small  groves  of  trees,  an  abundance  of 
grapes,  the  wild  cherry  of  the  Missouri, — resembling 
our  own,  but  larger,  and  growing  on  a  small  bush. 
The  plums  are  of  three  kinds, — two  of  a  yellow  color, 
and  distinguished  by  one  of  the  species  being  larger 
than  the  other ;  a  third  species  of  red  color.  All  have 
an  excellent  flavor,  particularly  the  yellow  kind." 

PIPE-CLAY  BOCK. 

•'Aug.  21.  —  We  passed  the  mouth  of  the  Great 
Sioux  River.  Our  Indian  interpreter  tells  us  that  on 
the  head  waters  of  this  river  is  the  quarry  of  red 
rock  of  which  the  Indians  make  their  pipes  ;  and  the 
necessity  of  procuring  that  article  has  introduced  a 
law  of  nations,  by  which  the  banks  of  the  stream  are 
sacred ;  and  even  tribes  at  war  meet  without  hostility 
at  these  quarries,  which  possess  a  right  of  asylum. 
Thus  we  find,  even  among  savages,  certain  principles 
deemed  sacred,  by  which  the  rigors  of  their  merciless 
system  of  warfare  are  mitigated." 


CHAPTER    HI. 

THE    SIOUX. 

THE  Indian  tribes  which  our  adventurers  had  thus 
far  encountered  had  been  friendly,  or  at  least 
inoffensive ;  but  they  were  feeble  bands,  and  all  of 
them  lived  in  terror  of  their  powerful  neighbors,  the 
Sioux.  On  the  23d  of  September,  the  party  reached 
a  region  inhabited  by  the  Tetons,  a  tribe  of  Sioux. 
The  journal  gives  an  account  of  their  intercourse 
with  these  new  acquaintances  as  follows :  — 

"  The  morning  was  fine  ;  and  we  raised  a  flag-staff, 
and  spread  an  awning,  under  which  we  assembled, 
with  all  the  party  under  arms.  The  chiefs  and  war- 
riors from  the  Indian  camp,  about  fifty  in  number,  met 
us ;  and  Capt.  Lewis  made  a  speech  to  them.  After 
this,  we  went  through  the  ceremony  of  acknowledging 
the  chiefs  by  giving  to  the  grand  chief  a  medal,  a  flag 
of  the  United  States,  a  laced  uniform  coat,  a  cocked 
hat  and  feather ;  to  the  two  other  chiefs,  a  medal  and 


24  OREGON. 

some  small  presents ;  and  to  two  warriors  of  conside- 
ration, certificates.  We  then  invited  the  chiefs  on 
board,  and  showed  them  the  boat,  the  air-gun,  and 
such  curiosities  as  we  thought  might  amuse  them. 
In  this  we  succeeded  too  well ;  for  after  giving  them 
a  quarter  of  a  glass  of  whiskey,  which  they  seemed 
to  like  very  much,  it  was  with  much  difficulty  we 
could  get  rid  of  them.  They  at  last  accompanied 
Capt.  Clarke  back  to  shore  in  a  boat  with  five 
men;  but  no  sooner  had  the  party  landed  than 
three  of  the  Indians  seized  the  cable  of  the  boat, 
and  one  of  the  soldiers  of  the  chief  put  his  arms 
round  the  mast.  The  second  chief,  who  affected  in- 
toxication, then  said  that  we  should  not  go  on ;  that 
they  had  not  received  presents  enough  from  us. 
Capt.  Clarke  told  him  that  we  would  not  be  prevented 
from  going  on ;  that  we  were  not  squaws,  but  war- 
riors ;  that  we  were  sent  by  our  great  Father,  who 
could  in  a  moment  exterminate  them.  The  chief  re- 
plied that  he,  too,  had  warriors  ;  and  was  proceeding 
to  lay  hands  on  Capt.  Clarke,  who  immediately  drew 
his  sword,  and  made  a  signal  to  the  boat  to  prepare 
for  action.  The  Indians  who  surrounded  him  drew 
their  arrows  from  their  quivers,  and  were  bending 
their  bows,  when  the  swivel  in  the  large  boat  was 


THE  SIOUX.  25 

pointed  towards  them,  and  twelve  of  our  most  de- 
termined men  jumped  into  the  small  boat,  and  joined 
Capt.  Clarke.  This  movement  made  an  impression 
on  them  ;  for  the  grand  chief  ordered  the  young  men 
away  from  the  boat,  and  the  chiefs  withdrew,  and  held 
a  short  council  with  the  warriors.  Being  unwilling 
to  irritate  them,  Capt.  Clarke  then  went  forward,  and 
offered  his  hand  to  the  first  and  second  chiefs,  who 
refused  to  take  it.  He  then  turned  from  them,  and 
got  into  the  boat,  but  had  not  gone  more  than  a 
stone's-throw,  when  the  two  chiefs  and  two  of  the 
warriors  waded  in  after  him ;  and  he  took  them  on 
board. 

"  Sept.  26.  —  Our  conduct  yesterday  seemed  to 
have  inspired  the  Indians  with  respect;  and,  as  we 
were  desirous  of  cultivating  their  acquaintance,  we 
complied  with  their  wish  that  we  should  give  them  an 
opportunity  of  treating  us  well,  and  also  suffer  their 
squaws  and  children  to  see  us  and  our  boat,  which 
would  be  perfectly  new  to  them.  Accordingly,  after 
passing  a  small  island  ahd  several  sand-bars,  we  came 
to  on  the  south  shore,  where  a  crowd  of  men,  women, 
and  children,  were  waiting  to  receive  us.  Capt. 
Lewis  went  on  shore,  and,  observing  that  their  dispo- 
sition seemed  friendly,  resolved  to  remain  during  the 


26  OREGON. 

night  to  a  dance  which  they  were  preparing  for  us. 
The  captains,  who  went  on  shore  one  after  the  other, 
were  met  on  the  landing  by  ten  well-dressed  young 
men,  who  took  them  up  in  a  robe  highly  decorated, 
and  carried  them  to  a  large  council-house,  where  they 
were  placed  on  a  dressed  buffalo-skin  by  the  side  of 
the  grand  chief.  The  hall,  or  council-room,  was  in  the 
shape  of  three-quarters  of  a  circle,  covered  at  the  top 
and  sides  with  skins  well  dressed,  and  sewed  together. 
Under  this  shelter  sat  about  seventy  men,  forming 
a  circle  round  the  chief,  before  whom  were  placed  a 
Spanish  flag  and  the  one  we  had  given  them  yester- 
day. In  the.  vacant  space  in  the  centre,  the  pipe  of 
peace  was  raised  on  two  forked  sticks  about  six  or 
eight  inches  from  the  ground,  and  under  it  the  down 
of  the  swan  was  scattered.  A  large  fire,  at  which 
they  were  cooking,  stood  near,  and  a  pile  of  about 
four  hundred  pounds  of  buffalo-meat,  as  a  present 
for  us. 

"  As  soon  as  we  were  seated,  an  old  man  rose,  and, 
after  approving  what  we  had'done,  begged  us  to  take 
pity  upon  their  unfortunate  situation.  To  this  we  re- 
plied with  assurances  of  protection.  After  he  had 
ceased,  the  great  chief  rose,  and  delivered  an  ha- 
rangue to  the  same  effect.  Then,  with  great  solem- 


-THE  SIOUX.  27 

nity,  he  took  some  of  the  more  delicate  parts  of  the 
dog,  which  was  cooked  for  the  festival,  and  held  it  to 
the  flag  by  way  of  sacrifice  :  this  done,  he  held  up 
the  pipe  of  peace,  and  first  pointed  it  towards  the 
heavens,  then  to  the  four  quarters  of  the  globe,  and 
then  to  the  earth ;  made  a  short  speech ;  lighted  the 
pipe,  and  presented  it  to  us.  We  smoked,  and  he 
again  harangued  his  people ;  after  which  the  repast 
was  served  up  to  us.  It  consisted  of  the  dog,  which 
they  had  just  been  cooking ;  this  being  a  great  dish 
among  the  Sioux,  and  used  at  all  festivals.  To  this 
was  added  pemitigon,  a  dish  made  of  buffalo-meat, 
dried,  and  then  pounded,  and  mixed  raw  with  fat ;  and 
a  root  like  the  potato,  dressed  like  the  preparation  of 
Indian-corn  called  hominy.  Of  all  these  luxuries, 
which  were  placed  before  us  in  platters,  with  horn 
spoons,  we  took  the  pemitigon  and  the  potato,  which 
we  found  good  ;  but  we  could  as  yet  partake  but  spar- 
ingly of  the  dog.  We  ate  and  smoked  for  an  hour, 
when  it  became  dark.  Every  thing  was  then  cleared 
away  for  the  dance  ;  a  large  fire  being  made  in  the 
centre  of  the  house,  giving  at  once  light  and  warmth 
to  the  ball-room.  The  orchestra  was  composed  of 
about  ten  men,  who  played  on  a  sort  of  tambourine 
formed  of  skin  stretched  across  a  hoop,  and  made  a 


28  OREGON.     • 

jingling  noise  with  a  long  stick,  to  which  the  hoofs 
of  deer  and  goats  were  hung.  The  third  instrument 
was  a  small  skin  bag,  with  pebbles  in  it.  These,  with 
five  or  six  young  men  for  the  vocal  part,  made  up  the 
band. 

"  The  women  then  came  forward  highly  decorated ; 
some  with  poles  in  their  hands,  on  which  were  hung 
the  scalps  of  their  enemies ;  others  with  guns,  spears, 
or  different  trophies,  taken  in  war  by  their  husbands, 
brothers,  or  connections.  Having  arranged  them- 
selves in  two  columns,  as  soon  as  the  music  began 

they  danced  towards  each  other  till  they  met  in  the 

• 
centre;  when  the  rattles  were  shaken,  and  they  all 

shouted,  and  returned  back  to  their  places.  They 
have  no  steps,  but  shuffle  along  the  ground ;  nor  does 
the  music  appear  to  be  any  thing  more  than  a  confusion 
of  noises,  distinguished  only  by  hard  or  gentle  blows 
upon  the  buffalo-skin.  The  song  is  perfectly  extem- 
poraneous. In  the  pauses  of  the  dance,  any  man  of 
the  company  comes  forward,  and  recites,  in  a  low, 
guttural  tone,  some  little  story  or  incident,  which  is 
either  martial  or  ludicrous.  This  is  taken  up  by  the 
orchestra  and  the  dancers,  who  repeat  it  in  a  higher 
strain,  and  dance  to  it.  Sometimes  they  alternate, 
the  orchestra  first  performing ;  and,  when  it  ceases, 


THE  SIOUX.  29 

the  women  raise  their  voices,  and  make  a  music  more 
agreeable,  that  is,  less  intolerable,  than  that  of  the 
musicians. 

"The  harmony  of  the  entertainment  had  nearly 
been  disturbed  by  one  of  the  musicians,  who,  think- 
ing he  had  not  received  a  due  share  of  the  tobacco 
we  had  distributed  during  the  evening,  put  himself 
into  a  passion,  broke  one  of  the  drums,  threw  two  of 
them  into  the  fire,  and  left  the  band.  They  were 
taken  out  of  the  fire :  a  buffalo-robe,  held  in  one  hand, 
and  beaten  with  the  other,  supplied  the  place  of  the 
lost  drum  or  tambourine ;  and  no  notice  was  taken  of 
the  offensive  conduct  of  the  man.  We  staid  till 
twelve  o'clock  at  night,  when  we  informed  the  chiefs 
that  they  must  be  fatigued  with  all  these  attempts  to 
amuse  us,  and  retired,  accompanied  by  four  chiefs, 
two  of  whom  spent  the  night  with  us  on  board." 

THE   SIOUX. 

"  The  tribe  which  we  this  day  saw  are  a  part  of  the 
great  Sioux  nation,  and  are  known  by  the  name  of 
the  Teton  Okandandas :  they  are  about  two  hundred 
men  in  number,  and  their  chief  residence  is  on  both 
sides  of  the  Missouri,  between  the  Cheyenne  and 
Teton  Rivers. 


30  OREGON. 

"  The  men  shave  the  hair  off  their  heads,  except  a 
small  tuft  on  the  top,  which  they  suffer  to  grow,  and 
wear  in  plaits  over  the  shoulders.  To  this  they  seem 
much  attached,  as  the  loss  of  it  is  the  usual  sacrifice  at 
the  death  of  near  relations.  In  full  dress,  the  men  of 
consideration  wear  a  hawk's  feather  or  calumet  feath- 
er, worked  with  porcupine-quills,  and  fastened  to  the 
top  of  the  head,  from  which  it  falls  back.  The  face 
and  body  are  generally  painted  with  a  mixture  of 
grease  and  coal.  Over  the  shoulders  is  a  loose  robe  or 
mantle  of  buffalo-skin,  adorned  with  porcupine-quills, 
which  are  loosely  fixed  so  as  to  make  a  jingling  noise 
when  in  motion,  and  painted  with  various  uncouth 
figures  unintelligible  to  us,  but  to  them  emblematic 
of  military  exploits  or  any  other  incident.  The  hair 
of  the  robe  is  worn  next  the  skin  in  fair  weather ; 
but,  when  it  rains,  the  hair  is  put  outside.  Under 
this  robe  they  wear  in  winter  a  kind  of  shirt,  made 
either  of  skin  or  cloth,  covering  the  arms  and  body. 
Round  the  middle  is  fixed  a  girdle  of  cloth  or  elk- 
skin,  about  an  inch  in  width,  and  closely  tied  to  the 
body.  To  this  is  attached  a  piece  of  cloth  or  blanket 
or  skin  about  a  foot  wide,  which  passes  between  the 
legs,  and  is  tucked  under  the  girdle  both  before  and 
behind.  From  the  hip  to  the  ankle,  the  man  is  covered 


THE  SIOUX.  31 

with  leggings  of  dressed  antelope-skins,  with  seams 
at  the  sides  two  inches  in  width,  and  ornamented 
by  little  tufts  of  hair,  the  product  of  the  scalps  they 
have  taken  in  war,  which  are  scattered  down  the  leg. 

"  The  moccasons  are  of  dressed  buffalo-skin,  the 
hair  being  worn  inwards.  On  great  occasions,  or 
whenever  they  are  in  full  dress,  the  young  men  drag 
after  them  the  entire  skin  of  a  polecat,  fixed  to  the 
heel  of  the  moccason. 

"  The  hair  of  the  women  is  suffered  to  grow  long, 
and  is  parted  from  the  forehead  across  the  head ;  at 
the  back  of  which  it  is  either  collected  into  a  kind  of 
bag,  or  hangs  down  over  the  shoulders.  Their  moc- 
casons are  like  those  of  the  men,  as  are  also  the  leg- 
gings, which  do  not  reach  beyond  the  knee,  where 
they  are  met  by  a  long,  loose  mantle  of  skin,  which 
reaches  nearly  to  the  ankles.  This  is  fastened  over 
the  shoulders  by  a  string,  and  has  no  sleeves ;  but  a 
few  pieces  of  the  skin  hang  a  short  distance  down  the 
arm.  Sometimes  a  girdle  fastens  this  skin  round  the 
waist,  and  over  all  is  thrown  a  robe  like  that  worn  by 
the  men. 

"  Their  lodges  are  very  neatly  constructed.  They 
consist  of  about  one  hundred  cabins,  made  of  white 
buffalo-hide,  with  a  larger  cabin  in  the  centre  for  hold- 


32  OREGON. 

ing  councils  and  dances.  They  are  built  round  with 
poles  about  fifteen  or  twenty  feet  high,  covered  with 
white  skins.  These  lodges  may  be  taken  to  pieces, 
packed  up,  and  carried  with  the  nation,  wherever 
they  go,  by  dogs,  which  bear  great  burdens.  The 
women  are  chiefly  employed  in  dressing  buffalo-skins. 
These  people  seem  well-disposed,  but  are  addicted  to 
stealing  any  thing  which  they  can  take  without  being 
observed." 


CHAPTER    IV. 

SUMMARY   OF  TRAVEL  TO  WINTER-QUARTERS. 

OEPT.  1,  1804.  — The  daily  progress  of  the  expedi- 
^^  tion  from  this  date  is  marked  by  no  incidents  of 
more  importance  than  the  varying  fortunes  of  travel,  as 
they  found  the  river  more  or  less  favorable  to  naviga- 
tion, and  the  game  more  or  less  abundant  on  the  banks. 
Their  progress  was  from  twelve  to  twenty  miles 
a  day.  In  general,  their  sails  served  them  ;  but  they 
were  sometimes  obliged  to  resort  to  the  use  of  tow- 
lines,  which,  being  attached  to  a  tree  or  other  firm 
object  on  the  shore,  enabled  the  men  to  pull  the  boat 
along.  This  seems  but  a  slow  method  of  voyaging ; 
yet  they  found  it  by  no  means  the  slowest,  and  were 
sorry  when  the  nature  of  the  banks,  being  either  too 
lofty  or  too  low,  precluded  their  use  of  it.  Their  nar- 
rative is,  however,  varied  by  accounts  of  the  scenery 
and  natural  productions  of  the  country  through  which 
they  passed,  and  by  anecdotes  of  the  Indians.  While 

3  33 


34  OREGON. 

they  are  making  their  toilsome  advance  up  the  river, 
let  us  see  what  they  have  to  tell  us  of  the  strange 
people  and  remarkable  objects  which  they  found  on 
their  way. 

PRAIRIE-DOGS. 

"  We  arrived  at  a  spot  on  the  gradual  descent  of 
the  hill,  nearly  four  acres  in  extent,  and  covered  with 
small  holes.  These  are  the  residences  of  little  animals 
called  prairie-dogs,  who  sit  erect  near  the  mouth 
of  the  hole,  and  make  a  whistling  noise,  but,  when 
alarmed,  take  refuge  in  their  holes.  In  order  to  bring 
them  out,  we  poured  into  one  of  the  holes  five  barrels 
of  water,  without  filling  it ;  but  we  dislodged  and 
caught  the  owner.  After  digging  down  another  of 
the  holes  for  six  feet,  we  found,  on  running  a  pole  into 
it,  that  we  had  not  yet  dug  half-way  to  the  bottom. 
We  discovered  two  frogs  in  the  hole ;  and  near  it  we 
killed  a  rattlesnake,  which  had  swallowed  a  small 
prairie-dog.  We  have  been  told,  though  we  never 
witnessed  the  fact,  that  a  sort  of  lizard  and  a  snake 
live  habitually  with  these  animals. 

"  The  prairie-dog  is  well  named,  as  it  resembles  a 
dog  in  most  particulars,  though  it  has  also  some  points 
of  similarity  to  the  squirrel.  The  head  resembles  the 


SUMMARY  OF  TRAVEL   TO   WINTER-QUARTERS.      35 

squirrel  in  every  respect,  except  that  the  ear  is 
shorter.  The  tail  is  like  that  of  the  ground-squirrel ; 
the  toe-nails  are  long,  the  fur  is  fine,  and  the  long 
hair  is  gray." 

ANTELOPES. 

"Of  all  the  animals  we  have  seen,  the  antelope 
possesses  the  most  wonderful  fleetness.  Shy  and 
timorous,  they  generally  repose  only  on  the  ridges, 
which  command  a  view  in  all  directions.  Their  sight 
distinguishes  the  most  distant  danger ;  their  power 
of  smell  defeats  the  attempt  at  concealment :  and, 
when  alarmed,  their  swiftness  seems  more  like  the 
flight  of  birds  than  the  movement  of  an  animal  over 
the  ground.  Capt.  Lewis,  after-  many  unsuccessful 
attempts,  succeeded  in  approaching,  undiscovered,  a 
party  of  seven,  which  were  on  an  eminence.  The 
only  male  of  the  party  frequently  encircled  the  sum- 
mit of  the  hill,  as  if  to  discover  if  any  danger  threat- 
ened the  party.  When  Capt.  Lewis  was  at  the  dis- 
tance of  two  hundred  yards,  they  became  alarmed, 
and  fled.  He  immediately  ran  to  the  spot  they  had 
left.  A  ravine  concealed  them  from  him ;  but  the 
next  moment  they  appeared  on  a  second  ridge,  at  the 
distance  of  three  miles.  He  doubted  whether  they 


36  OK  EG  ON. 

could  be  the  same  ;  but  their  number,  and  the  direc- 
tion in  which  they  fled,  satisfied  him  that  it  was  the 
same  party  :  yet  the  distance  they  had  made  in  the 
time  was  such  as  would  hardly  have  been  possible  to 
the  swiftest  racehorse." 

PELICAN  ISLAND. 

"42. —  This  name  we  gave  to  a  long  island,  from 
the  numbers  of  pelicans  which  were  feeding  on  it. 
One  of  them  being  killed,  we  poured  into  his  bag  five 
gallons  of  water/' 

NOTE. 

"  The  antelopes  are  becoming  very  numerous.  Their  speed 
exceeds  that  of  any  animal  I  have  ever  seen.  Our  hounds  can 
do  nothing  in  giving  them  the  chase  :  so  soon  are  they  left  far  in 
the  rear,  that  they  do  not  follow  them  more  than  ten  or  twenty 
rods  before  they  return,  looking  ashamed  of  their  defeat.  Our 
hunters  occasionally  take  the  antelope  by  coming  upon  them  by 
stealth.  When  they  are  surprised,  they  start  forward  a  very 
small  space,  then  turn,  and,  with  high-lifted  heads,  stare  for  a 
few  seconds  at  the  object  which  has  alarmed  them,  and  then, 
with  a  half-whistling  snuff,  bound  off,  seeming  to  be  as  much 
upon  wings  as  upon  feet.  They  resemble  the  goat,  but  are  far 
more  beautiful.  Though  they  are  of  different  colors,  yet  they 
are  generally  red,  and  have  a  large,  fine,  prominent  eye.  Their 
flesh  is  good  for  food,  and  about  equals  venison."  —  Parker's 
Tour. 


SUMMARY  OF  TRAVEL   TO   WINTER-QUARTERS.      37 
INDIAN   VILLAGES    AND   AGRICULTURE. 

"  We  halted  for  dinner  at  a  deserted  village,  which 
we  suppose  to  have  belonged  to  the  Ricaras.  It  is 
situated  in  a  low  plain  on  the  river,  and  consists  of 
about  eighty  lodges,  of  an  octagon  form,  neatly 
covered  with  earth,  placed  as  close  to  each  other  as 
possible,  and  picketed  round.  The  skin-canoes,  mats, 
buckets,  and  articles  of  furniture,  found  in  the  lodges, 
induce  us  to  suppose  that  it  was  left  in  the  spring. 
We  found  three  different  kinds  of  squashes  growing 
in  the  village. 

"  Another  village,  which  we  reached  two  days  later, 
was  situated  oil  an  island,  which  is  three  miles  long, 
and  covered  with  fields,  in  which  the  Indians  raise 
corn,  beans,  and  potatoes.  We  found  here  several 
Frenchmen  living  among  the  Indians,  as  interpreters 
or  traders.  The  Indians  gave  us  some  corn,  beans, 
and  dried  squashes ;  and  we  gave  them  a  steel  mill, 
with  which  they  were  much  pleased.  We  sat  con- 
versing with  the  chiefs  some  time,  during  which  they 
treated  us  to  a  bread  made  of  corn  and  beans,  also 
corn  and  beans  boiled,  and  a  large  rich  bean  which 
they  take  from  the  mice  of  the  prairie,  who  discover 
and  collect  it.  We  gave  them  some  sugar,  salt,  and  a 
sun-glass." 


38  OREGON. 

YORK,   THE   NEGRO. 

"  The  object  which  seemed  to  astonish  the  Indians 
most  was  Capt.  Clarke's  servant,  York,  —  a  sturdy 
negro.  They  had  never  seen  a  human  being  of  that 
color,  and  therefore  flocked  round  him  to  examine  the 
monster.  By  way  of  amusement,  he  told  them  that 
he  had  once  been  a  wild  animal,  and  been  caught  and 
tamed  by  his  master,  and,  to  convince  them,  showed 
them  feats  of  strength,  which,  added  to  .his  looks, 
made  him  more  terrible  than  we  wished  him  to  be. 
At  all  the  villages  he  was  an  object  of  astonishment. 
The  children  would  follow  him  constantly,  and,  if  he 
chanced  to  turn  towards  them,  would  run  with  great 
terror." 

STONE-IDOL   CREEK. 

"  We  reached  the  mouth  of  a  creek,  to  which  we 
gave  the  name  of  Stone-Idol  Creek  •  for,  on  passing 
up,  we  discovered,  that,  a  few  miles  back  from  the  Mis- 
souri, there  are  two  stones  resembling  human  .figures, 
and  a  third  like  a  dog ;  all  which  are  objects  of  great 
veneration  among  the  Ricaras.  Their  history  would 
adorn  the  "  Metamorphoses  "  of  Ovid.  A  young  man 
was  in  love  with  a  girl  whose  parents  refused  their 
consent  to  the  marriage.  The  youth  went  out  into 


SUMMARY  OF  TRAVEL   TO   WINTER-QUARTERS.     39 

the  fields  to  mourn  his  misfortunes :  a  sympathy  of 
feeling  led  the  girl  to  the  same  spot ;  and  the  faithful 
dog  would  not  fail  to  follow  his  master.  After  wan- 
dering together,  and  having  nothing  but  grapes  to 
subsist  on,  they  were  at  last  converted  into  stone, 
which,  beginning  at  the  feet,  gradually  invaded  the 
nobler  parts,  leaving  nothing  unchanged  but  a  bunch 
of  grapes,  which  the  female  holds  in  her  hands  to  this 
day.  Such  is  the  account  given  by  the  Ricara  chief, 
which  we  had  no  means  of  testing,  except  that  we 
found  one  part  of  the  story  very  agreeably  confirmed ; 
for  on  the  banks  of  the  creek  we  found  a  greater 
abundance  of  fine  grapes  than  we  had  seen  else- 
where." 

GOATS. 

"  Great  numbers  of  goats  are  crossing  the  river,  and 
directing  their  course  to  the  westward.  We  are  told 
that  they  spend  the  summer  in  the  plains  east  of  the 
Missouri,  and  at  this  season  (October)  are  returning 
to  the  Black  Mountains,  where  they  subsist  on  leaves 
and  shrubbery  during  the  winter,  and  resume  their 
migrations  in  the  spring.  At  one  place,  we  saw 
large  flocks  of  them  in  the  water.  They  had  been 
gradually  driven  into  the  river  by  the  Indians,  who 
now  lined  the  shore  so  as  to  prevent  their  escape,  and 


40  OREGON. 

were  firing  on  them  ;  while  boys  went  into  the  river, 
and  killed  them  with  sticks.  They  seemed  to  have 
been  very  successful ;  for  we  counted  fifty-eight  which 
they  had  killed.  In  the  evening  they  made  a  feast, 
that  lasted  till  late  at  night,  and  caused  much  noise 
and  merriment. 

"  The  country  through  which  we  passed  has  wider 
river-bottoms  and  more  timber  than  those  we  have 
been  accustomed  to  see ;  the  hills  rising  at  a  distance, 
and  by  gradual  ascents.  We  have  seen  great  num- 
bers of  elk,  deer,  goats,  and  buffaloes,  and  the  usual 
attendants  of  these  last,  —  the  wolves,  which  follow 
their  movements,  and  feed  upon  those  who  die  by  ac- 
cident, or  are  too  feeble  to  keep  pace  with  the  herd. 
We  also  wounded  a  white  bear,,  and  saw  some  fresh 
tracks  of  those  animals,  which  are  twice  as  large  as 
the  tracks  of  a  man." 

THE    PRAIRIE    ON   FIRE. 

"  In  the  evening,  the  prairie  took  fire,  either  by  ac- 
cident or  design,  and  burned  with  great  fury;  the 
whole  plain  being  enveloped  in  flames.  So  rapid  was 
its  progress,  that  a  man  and  a  woman  were  burned  to 
death  before  they  could  reach  a  place  of  safety.  An- 
other man,  with  his  wife  and  child,  were  much 


SUMMARY  OF  .TRAVEL    TO    WINTER-QUARTERS.      41 

burned,  and  several  other  persons  narrowly  escaped 
destruction.  Among  the  rest,  a  boy  of  the  half-breed 
escaped  unhurt  in  the  midst  of  the  flames.  His 
safety  was  ascribed  by  the  Indians  to  the  Great 
Spirit,  who  had  saved  him  on  account  of  his  being 
white.  But  a  much  more  natural  cause  was  the  pres- 
ence of  mind  of  his  mother,  who,  seeing  no  hopes  of 
carrying  off  her  son,  threw  him  on  the  ground,  and, 
covering  him  with  the  fresh  hide  of  a  buffalo,  escaped 
herself  from  the  flames.  As  soon  as  the  fire  had 
passed,  she  returned,  and  found  him  untouched ;  the 
skin  having  prevented  the  flame  from  reaching  the 
grass  where  he  lay." 

A  COUNCIL. 

"  After  making  eleven  miles,  we  reached  an  old  field, 
where  the  Mandans  had  cultivated  grain  last  summer. 
We  encamped  for  the  night  about  half  a  mile  below 
the  first  village  of  the  Mandans.  As  soon  as  we  ar- 
rived, a  crowd  of  men,  women,  and  children,  came 
clown  to  see  us.  Capt.  Lewis  returned  with  the  prin- 
cipal chiefs  to  the  village,  while  the  others  remained 
with  us  during  the  evening.  The  object  which 
seemed  to  surprise  them  most  was  a  corn-mill,  fixed 
to  the  boat,  which  we  had  occasion  to  use  ;  while  they 


42  OREGON. 

looked  on,  and  were  delighted  at  observing  the  ease 
with  which  it  reduced  the  grain  to  powder. 

"  Among  others  who  visited  us  was  the  son  of  the 
grand  chief  of  the  Mandans,  who  had  both  his  little 
fingers  cut  off  at  the  second  joint.  On  inquiring  into 
this  injury,  we  found  that  the  custom  was  to  express 
grief  for  the  death  of  relations  by  some  corporeal  suf- 
fering, and  that  the  usual  mode  was  to  lose  a  joint  of 
the  little  finger,  or  sometimes  of  other  fingers. 

"  Oct.  29,  1804.  —  The  morning  was  fine,  and  we 
prepared  our  presents  and  speech  for  the  council.  At 
ten  o'clock,  the  chiefs  were  all  assembled  under  an 
awning  of  our  sails.  That  the  impression  might  be 
the  more  forcible,  the  men  were  all  paraded  ;  and  the 
council  opened  by  a  discharge  from  the  swivel  of  the 
boat.  Capt.  Lewis  then  delivered  a  speech,  which, 
like  those  we  had  already  made,  intermingled  advice 
with  assurances  of  friendship  and  trade.  While  he 
was  speaking,  the  Ahnahaway  chief  grew  very  restless, 
and  observed  that  he  could  not  wait  long,  as  his  camp 
was  exposed  to  the  hostilities  of  the  Shoshonees.  He 
was  instantly  rebuked  with  great  dignity,  by  one  of 
the  chiefs,  for  this  violation  of  decorum  at  such  a  mo- 
ment, and  remained  quiet  during  the  rest  of  the  coun- 
cil. This  being  over,  we  proceeded  to  distribute  the 


SUMMARY  OF  TRAVEL   TO   WINTER-QUARTERS.     43 

presents  with  great  ceremony.  One  chief  of  each 
town  was  acknowledged  by  the  gift  of  a  flag,  a  medal 
with  the  likeness  of  the  President  of  the  United 

States,  a  uniform  coat,  hat,  and  feather.     To  the  second 

/ 
chiefs  we  gave  a  medal  representing  some  domestic 

animals,  and  a  loom  for  weaving ;  to  the  third  chiefs, 
medals  with  the  impression  of  a  farmer  sowing  grain. 
A  variety  of  other  products  were  distributed;  but 
none  seemed  to  give  more  satisfaction  than  an  iron 
corn-mill  which  we  gave  them. 

"  In  the  evening,  our  men  danced  among  them- 
selves to  the  music  of  the  violin,  to  the  great  amuse- 
ment of  the  Indians." 

THEY  ENCAMP   FOR    THE  WINTER. 

"  Friday,  Nov.  7,  1804.  —  Capt.  Clarke  having  ex- 
amined the  shores,  and  found  a  position  where  there 
was  plenty  of  timber,  we  encamped,  and  began  to  fell 
trees  to  build  our  huts.  The  timber  which  we  em- 
ploy is  cotton-wood  (poplar)  and  elm,  with  some  ash 
of  inferior  size.  By  the  8th,  our  huts  were  ad- 
vanced very  well;  on  the  13th,  we  unloaded  the  boat, 
and  stowed  away  the  contents  in  a  storehouse  which 
we  had  built. 

"  Nov.  20.  —  This  day  we  moved   into   our   huts, 


44  OREGON. 

which  are  now  completed.  We  call  our  place  Fort 
Mandan.  It  is  situated  on  a  point  of  low  ground 
on  the  north  side  of  the  Missouri,  covered  with 
tall  and  heavy  cotton-wood.  The  works  consist  of 
two  rows  of  huts  or  sheds,  forming  an  angle  where 
they  join  each  other ;  each  row  containing  four  rooms 
of  fourteen  feet  square  and  seven  feet  high,  with 
plank  ceiling,  and  the  roof  slanting  so  as  to  form  a  loft 
above  the  rooms,  the  highest  part  of  which  is  eigh- 
teen feet  from  the  ground.  The  backs  of  the  huts 
formed  a  wall  of  that  height ;  and,  opposite  the  angle, 
the  place  of  the  wall  was  supplied  by  picketing.  In 
the  area  were  two  rooms  for  stores  and  provisions. 
The  latitude,  by  observation,  is  47°  22',  long.  101°  ; 
and  the  computed  distance  from  the  mouth  of  the 
Missouri,  sixteen  hundred  miles. 

"Nov.  21.  —  We  are  now  settled  in  our  winter 
habitation,  and  shall  wait  with  much  impatience  the 
first  return  of  spring  to  continue  our  journey." 


CHAPTER   V. 

INDIAN  TRIBES. 

THE  villages  near  which  we  are  established  are 
the  residence  of  three  distinct  nations, — 
the  Mandans,  the.  Ahnahaways,  and  the  Minne- 
tarees.  The  Mandans  say,  that,  many  years  ago, 
their  tribe  was  settled  in  nine  villages,  the  ruins  of 
which  we  passed  about  eighty  miles  below.  Finding 
themselves  wasting  away  before  the  small-pox  and 
the  Sioux,  they  moved  up  the  river,  and  planted 
themselves  opposite  the  Ricaras.  Their  numbers  are 
very  much  reduced,  and  they  now  constitute  but  two 
villages,  —  one  on  each  side  of  the  river,  and  at  a  dis- 
tance of  three  miles  from  each  other.  Both  villages 
together  may  raise  about  three  hundred  and  fifty 
men." 

AHNAHAWAYS. 

"  Four  miles  from  the  lower  Mandan  village  is  one 
inhabited  by  the  Ahnahaways.     This  nation  formerly 

45 


46  OREGON. 

dwelt  on  the  Missouri,  about  thirty  miles  below  where 
they  now  live.  The  Assinaboins  and  Sioux  forced 
them  to  a  spot  five  miles  higher,  and  thence,  by  a  sec- 
ond, emigration,  to  their  present  situation,  in  order 
to  obtain  an  asylum  near  the  Minnetarees,  Their 
whole  force  is  about  fifty  men." 

MINNETAREES. 

"  About  half  a  mile  from  thfe  village,  and  in  the 
same  open  plain  with  it,  is  a  village  of  Minnetarees, 
who  are  about  one  hundred  and  fifty  men  in  number. 
One  and  a  half  miles  above  this  village  is  a  second  of 
the  same  tribe,  who  may  be  considered  the  proper  Min- 
netaree  nation.  It  is  situated  in  a  beautiful  plain,  and 
contains  four  hundred  and  fifty  warriors.  The  Man- 
dans  say  that  this  people  came  out  of  the  water  to  the 
east,  and  settled  near  them.  The  Minnetarees,  how- 
ever, assert  that  they  grew  where  they  now  live,  and 
will  never  emigrate  from  the  spot ;  the  Great  Spirit 
having  declared,  that,  if  they  move,  they  will  all 
perish. 

"  The  inhabitants  of  these  villages,  all  of  which  are 
within  the  compass  of  six  miles,  live  in  harmony  with 
each  other.  Their  languages  differ  to  some  extent ; 
but  their  long  residence  together  has  enabled  them  to 


INDIAN  TRIBES.  47 

understand  one  another's  speech  as  to  objects  of  daily 
occurrence,  and  obvious  to  the  senses. 

"All  these  tribes  are  at  deadly  feud  with  the 
Sioux,  who  are  much  more  powerful,  and  are  conse- 
quently objects  of  continual  apprehension.  The  pres- 
ence of  our  force  kept  the  peace  for  the  present. 

"  Almost  the  whole  of  that  vast  tract  of  country 
comprised  between  the  Mississippi,  the  Red  River  of 
Lake  Winnipeg,  the  Saskatchawan,  and  the  Missouri, 
is  loosely  occupied  by  a  great  nation  whose  primitive 
name  is  Dahcotas,  but  who  are  called  Sioux  by  the 
French,  Sues  by  the  English.  They  are  divided  into 
numerous  tribes,  named  Yanktons,  Tetons,  Assina- 
boins,  &c.  These  tribes  are  sometimes  at  war  with 
one  another,  but  still  acknowledge  relationship,  and 
are  recognized  by  similarity  of  language  and  by  tra- 
dition." 

RELIGION. 

"  The  religion  of  the  Mandans  consists  in  the  belief 
of  one  Great  Spirit  presiding  over  their  destinies. 
This  Being  must  be  in  the  nature  of  a  good  genius, 
since  it  is  associated  with  the  healing  art ;  and  the 
Great  Spirit  is  synonymous  with  Great  Medicine,  — 
a  name  also  applied  to  every  thing  they  do  not  compre- 
hend. They  also  believe  in  a  multiplicity  of  inferior 


48  OREGON. 

spirits.  Each  individual  selects  for  himself  the  par- 
ticular object  of  his  devotion,  which  is  termed  his  Med- 
icine, and  is  either  an  invisible  being,  or  more  com- 
monly some  animal,  which  thenceforward  becomes 
his  protector,  or  his  intercessor  with  the  Great  Spirit. 
To  propitiate  the  Medicine,  every  attention  is  lav- 
ished, and  every  personal  consideration  is  sacrificed. 
'I  was  lately  owner  of  seventeen  horses/  said  a 
Mandan ;  l  but  I  have  offered  them  all  up  to  my  Medi- 
cine, and  am  now  poor.'  He  had  in  reality  taken 
them  into  the  plain,  and,  turning  them  loose,  com- 
mitted them  to.  the  care  of  his  Medicine,  and  aban- 
doned them. 

"  Their  belief  in  a  future  state  is  connected  with  a 
tradition  of  their  origin.  The  whole  nation,  they  say, 
once  dwelt  in  one  large  village  underground.  A 
grape-vine  extended  its  roots  down  to  their  habita- 
tion ;  and  the  earth,  being  broken  round  its  stem,  gave 
them  a  view  of  the  light:  Some  of  the  more  adven- 
turous climbed  up  the  vine,  and  were  delighted  with 
the  sight  of  the  earth,  which  they  found  covered 
with  buffaloes,  and  rich  with  every  kind  of  fruit.  Re- 
turning with  the  grapes  they  had  gathered,  their 
countrymen  were  so  pleased  with  the  taste,  that  the 
whole  nation  resolved  to  leave  their  dull  residence 


INDIAN  TRIBES.  49 

for  the  upper  region.  Men,  women,  and  children 
ascended  by  means  of  the  vine ;  but,  when  about  half 
the  nation  had  reached  the  surface,  a  corpulent  wo- 
man, who  was  clambering  up  the  vine,  broke  it  with 
her  weight,  and,  falling,  closed  up  the  cavity.  Those 
who  had  reached  the  surface,  thus  excluded  from 
their  original  seats,  cherish  the  hopes  of  returning 
there  when  they  die." 

INDIAN   MANNEES. 

The  following  extract  imparts  some  traits  of  Indian 
manners :  — 

"  Nov.  22.  —  This  morning,  the  sentinel  informed 
us  that  an  Indian  was  about  to  kill  his  wife  near 
the  fort.  We  went  to  the  house  of  our  interpreter, 
where  we  found  the  parties,  and,  after  forbidding 
any  violence,  inquired  into  the  cause  of  his  in- 
tending to  commit  such  an  atrocity.  It  appeared 
that,  some  days  ago,  a  quarrel  had  taken. place  be- 
tween him  and  his  wife,  in  consequence  of  which  she 
had  taken  refuge  in  the  house  where  the  wives  of  our 
interpreter  lived.  By  running  away,  she  forfeited 
her  life,  which  might  be  lawfully  taken  by  the  hus- 
band. He  was  now  come  for  the  purpose  of  complet- 
ing his  revenge.  We  gave  him  a  few  presents,  and 


50  OREGON. 

tried  to  persuade  him  to  take  his  wife  home.  The 
grand  chief,  too,  happened  to  arrive  at  the  same  mo- 
ment, and  reproached  him  with  his  violence;  till 
at  length  husband  and  wife  went  off  together,  but 
by  no  means  in  a  state  of  much  apparent  connubial 
felicity." 

THE    WEATHER, 

"  Dec.  12,  1804.  —  The  thermometer  at  sunrise  was 
thirty-eight  degrees  below  zero ;  on  the  16th,  twenty- 
two  below ;  on  the  17th,  forty-five  below.  On  the 
19th,  it  moderated  a  little.  Notwithstanding  the  cold, 
we  observed  the  Indians  at  the  village  engaged,  out 
in  the  open  air,  at  a  game  which  resembles  billiards. 
The  platform,  which  answered  for  a  table,  was  formed 
with  timber,  smoothed  and  joined  so  as  to  be  as  level 
as  the  -floor  of  one  of  our  houses.  Instead  of  balls, 
they  had  circular  disks  made  of  clay-stone,  and  flat 
like  checkers." 

THE   AEGALI. 

"  Dec.  22.  —  A  number  of  squaws  brought  corn  to 
trade  for  small  articles  with  the  men.  Among  other 
things,  we  procured  two  horns  of  the  animal  called  by 
the  hunters  the  Rocky-Mountain  sheep,  and  by  natu- 
ralists the  argali.  The  animal  is  about  the  size  of  a 
small  elk  or  large  deer  j  the  horns  winding  like  those 


INDIAN    TRIBES.  51 

of  a  ram,  which  they  resemble  also  in  texture,  though 
larger  and  thicker. 

"  Dec.  23.  —  The  weather  was  fine  and  warm.  We 
were  visited  by  crowds  of  Indians  of  all  descrip- 
tion, who  came  either  to  trade,  or  from  mere  curi- 
osity. Among  the  rest,  Kagohami,  the  Little  Raven, 
brought  his  wife  and  son,  loaded  with  corn  ;  and  she 
entertained  us  with  a  favorite  Mandan  dish,  —  a  mix- 
ture of  pumpkins,  beans,  corn,  and  choke-cherries,  all 
boiled  together  in  a  kettle,  and  forming  a  composition 
by  no  means  unpalatable. 

"  Dec.  25.  —  Christmas  Day.  We  were  awakened 
before  day  by  a  discharge  of  fire-arms  from  the  party. 
We  had  told  the  Indians  not  to  visit  us,  as  it  was  one 
of  our  great  Medicine-days  ;  so  that  the  men  remained 
at  home,  and  amused  themselves  in  various  ways,  par- 
ticularly with  dancing,  in  which  they  take  great  plea- 
sure. The  American  flag  was  hoisted  for  the  first 
time  in  the  fort ;  the  best  provisions  we  had  were 
brought  out ;  and  this,  with  a  little  brandy,  enabled 
them  to  pass  the  day  in  great  festivity." 

• 

THE    BLACKSMITH. 

"Dec.  27.  —  We  were  fortunate  enough  to  have 
among  our  men  a  good  blacksmith,  whom  we  set  to 


52  OREGON. 

work  to  make  a  variety  of  articles.  His  operations 
seemed  to  surprise  the  Indians  who  came  to  see 
us ;  but  nothing  could  equal  their  astonishment  at  the 
bellows,  which  they  considered  a  very  great  Medi- 
cine." 

THE  DYING    CHIEF. 

"  Kagohami  came  to  see  us  early.  His  village  was 
afflicted  by  the  death  of  one  of  their  aged  chiefs,  who, 
from  his  account,  must  have  been  more  than  a  hun- 
dred years  old.  Just  as  he  was  dying,  he  requested 
his  grand-children  to  dress  him  in  his  best  robe,  and 
carry  him  up  to  a  hill,  and  seat  him  on  a  stone,  with 
his  face  down  the  river,  towards  their  old  village, 
that  he  might  go  straight  to  his  brother,  who  had 
passed  before  him  to  the  ancient  village  under- 
ground." 

THE    MEDICINE-STONE. 

"  Oheenaw  and  Shahaka  came  down  to  see  us,  and 
mentioned  that  several  of  their  countrymen  had  gone 
to  consult  their  Medicine-stone  as  to  the  prospects  of 
the  following  year.  This  Medicine-stone  is  the  great 

oracle  of  the  Mandans,  and  whatever  it  announces  is 

• 
believed    with  implicit    confidence.     Every   spring, 

and  on  some  occasions  during  the  summer,  a  deputa- 
tion visits  the  sacred  spot,  where  there  is  a  thick, 


INDIAN    TRIBES.  & 

porous  stone  twenty  feet  in  circumference,  with  a 
smooth  surface.  Having  reached  the  place,  the  cere- 
mony of  smoking  to  it  is  performed  by  the  deputies, 
who  alternately  take  a  whiff  themselves,  and  then 
present  the  pipe  to  the  stone.  After  this,  they  retire 
to  an  adjoining  wood  for  the  night,  during  which  it 
may  be  safely  presumed  all  the  embassy  do  not  sleep ; 
and,  in  the  morning,  they  read  the  destinies  of  the  na- 
tion in  the  white  marks  on  the  stone,  which  those 
who  made  them  are  at  no  loss  to  decipher.  The 
Minnetarees  have  a  stone  of  a  similar  kind,  which  has 
the  same  qualities,  and  the  same  influence  over  the 
nation. " 

THE  INDIANS7  ENDURANCE  OF  COLD. 

"Jan.  10,  1805.  — The  weather  now  exhibited  the 
intensity  of  cold.  This  morning,  at  sunrise,  the 
mercury  stood  at  forty  degrees  below  zero.  One 
of  the  men,  separated  from  the  rest  in  hunting, 
was  out  all  night.  In  the  morning  he  returned,  and 
told  us  that  he  had  made  a  fire,  and  kept  himself  toler- 
ably warm.  A  young  Indian,  about  thirteen  years  of 
age,  came  in  soon  after.  He  had  been  overtaken  by 
the  night,  and  had  slept  in  the  snow,  with  no  covering 
but  a  pair  of  deer-skin  moccasons  and  leggings,  and  a 


54  OREGON, 

buffalo-robe.  His  feet  were  frozen  ;  but  we  restored 
them  by  putting  them  in  cold  water,  rendering  him 
every  attention  in  our  power.  Another  Indian,  who 
had  been  missing,  returned  about  the  same  time.  Al- 
though his  dress  was  very  thin,  and  he  had  slept  in 
the  snow,  without  a  fire,  he  had  not  suffered  any  in- 
convenience. These  Indians  support  the  rigors  of 
the  season  in  a  way  which  we  had  hitherto  thought 
impossible." 

SUPPLIES    OF    POOD. 

"  Our  supplies  are  chiefly  procured  by  hunting ;  but 
occasional  additions  are  made  by  the  Indians,  some- 
times in  the  way  of  gifts,  and  sometimes  in  exchange 
for  the  services  of  the  blacksmith,  who  is  a  most  im- 
portant member  of  the  party. 

"  Feb.  18.  —  Our  stock  of  meat  is  exhausted,  so 
that  we  must  confine  ourselves  to  vegetable  diet  till 
the  return  of  our  hunters.  For  this,  however,  we  are 
at  no  loss,  since  yesterday  and  to-day  our  black- 
smith got  large  quantities  of  corn  from  the  Indians 
who  came  to  the  fort. 

"  Sunday,  March  3.  —  The  men  are  all  employed  in 
preparing  the  boats.  We  are  visited  by  a  party  of 
Indians  with  corn.  A  flock  of  ducks  passed  up  the 
river  to-day. 


INDIAN    TRIBES.  55 

"Wednesday,  13. — We  had  a  fine  day,  and  a  south- 
west wind.  Many  Indians  came  to  see  us,  who  are 
so  anxious  for  battle-axes,  that  our  smiths  have  not  a 
moment's  leisure,  and  procure  us  an  abundance  of 
corn." 

HUNTING    BUFFALOES    ON    THE  ICE. 

"  March  25, 1805.  — A  fine  day,  the  wind  south-west. 
The  river  rose  nine  inches,  and  the  ice  began  break- 
ing away.  Our  canoes  are  now  nearly  ready,  and  we 
expect  to  set  out  as  soon  as  the  river  is  sufficiently 
clear  of  ice  to  permit  us  to  pass. 

"  March  29.  — The  ice  came  down  this  morning  in 
great  quantities.  We  have  had  few  Indians  at  the 
fort  for  the  last  three  or  four  days,  as  they  are  now 
busy  in  catching  the  floating  buffaloes.  Every 
spring,  as  the  river  is  breaking  up,  the  surrounding 
plains  are  set  on  fire,  and  the  buffaloes  tempted  to 
cross  the  river  in  search  of  the  fresh  grass  which  im- 
mediately succeeds  to  the  burning.  On  their  way, 
they  are  often  insulated  on  a  large  cake  or  mass  of 
ice  which  floats  down  the  river.  The  Indians  now 
select  the  most  favorable  points  for  attack,  and,  as  the 
buffalo  approaches,  run  with  astonishing  agility  across 
the  trembling  ice,  sometimes  pressing  lightly  a  cake 


56  OREGON. 

of  not  more  than  two  feet  square.  The  animal  is,  of 
course,  unsteady,  and  his  footsteps  insecure,  on  this 
new  element,  so  that  he  can  make  but  little  resist- 
ance ;  and  the  hunter  who  has  given  him  his  death- 
wound  paddles  his  icy  boat  to  the  shore,  and  secures 
his  prey." 


CHAPTER  VI. 

THE    MARCH    RESUMED. 

"C1ROM  the  1st  of  November,  1804,  to  the  1st  of 
April,  1805,  the  expedition  remained  stationary 
at  their  fort.  Some  of  their  number  had  been  sent 
back  to  the  States  with  despatches  to  the  Govern- 
ment, and  with  specimens  of  the  natural  productions 
of  the  country.  On  resuming  their  march  on  the 
4th  of  April,  the  party  consisted  of  thirty-two  per- 
sons. Besides  the  commanders,  there  were  three  ser- 
geants, —  Ordway,  Prior,  and  Gass  ;  twenty-three  pri- 
vates, besides  Capt.  Clark's  black  servant  York  ;  two 
interpreters,  —  George  Drewyer  and  Toussaint  Cha- 
boneau.  The  wife  of  Chaboneau,  an  Indian  woman, 
with  her  young  child,  accompanied  her  husband.  All 
this  party,  with  the  luggage,  was  stored  in  six  small 
canoes  and  two  pirogues.  They  left  the  fort  with 
fair  weather,  and,  after  making  four  miles,  encamped 
on  the  north  side  of  the  river,  nearly  opposite  the 
first  Mandan  village.  We  continue  their  journal. 

57 


58  OREGON. 

THE   RIVER-SHORE. 

"  April  8.  —  The  river-banks  exhibit  indications  of 
volcanic  agency.  The  bluffs  which  we  passed  to-day 
are  upwards  of  one  hundred  feet  high,  composed  of 
yellow  clay  and  sand,  with  horizontal  strata  of  car- 
bonated wood  resembling  pit-coal,  from  one  to  five 
feet  in  thickness,  scattered  through  the  bluff  at  differ- 
ent elevations.  Great  quantities  of  pumice-stone  and 
lava  are  seen  in  many  parts  of  the  hills,  where  they 
are  broken  and  washed  into  gullies  by  the  rain.  We 
passed  a  bluff  which  is  on  fire,  and  throws  out  quanti- 
ties of  smoke,  which  has  a  strong,  sulphurous  smell. 
On  the  sides  of  the  hills  is  a  white  substance,  which 
appears  in  considerable  quantities  on  the  surface,  and 
tastes  like  a  mixture  of  common  salt  with  Glauber 
salts.  Many  of  the  springs  which  come  from  the  foot 
of  the  hills  are  so  impregnated  with  this  substance, 
that  the  water  has  an  unpleasant  taste,  and  a  purga- 
tive effect." 

THE    PRAIRIE-MICE. 

"April,  1805.  —  We  saw,  but  could  not  procure,  an 
animal  that  burrows  in  the  ground,  similar  to  the 
burrowing-squirrel,  except  that  it  is  only  one-third  of 


THE  MARCH  RESUMED.  59 

its  size.  This  may  be  the  animal  whose  works  we 
have  often  seen  in  the  plains  and  prairies.  They  con- 
sist of  a  little  hillock  of  ten  or  twelve  pounds  of  loose 
earth,  which  would  seem  to  have  been  reversed  from 
a  flower-pot ;  and  no  aperture  is  seen  in  the  ground 
from  which  it  could  have  been  brought.  On  remov- 
ing gently  the  earth,  you  discover  that  the  soil  has 
been  broken  in  a  circle  of  about  an  inch  and  a  half  in 
diameter,  where  the  ground  is  looser,  though  still  no 
opening  is  perceptible.  When  we  stopped  for  dinner, 
the  Indian  woman  went  out,  and,  penetrating  with  a 
sharp  stick  the  holes  of  the  mice,  brought  a  quantity 
of  wild  artichokes,  which  the  mice  collect,  and  hoard 
in  large  quantities.  The  root  is  white,  of  an  ovate 
form,  from  one  to  three  inches  long,  and  generally  of 
the  size  of  a  man's  finger ;  and  two,  four,  and  some- 
times six  roots  are  attached  to  a  single  stalk.  Its  fla- 
vor, as  well  as  the  stalk  that  issues  from  it,  resemble 
those  of  the  Jerusalem  artichoke,  except  that  the  lat- 
ter is  much  larger." 

THE   YELLOW-STONE    RIVER. 

"  Certain  signs,  known  to  the  hunters,  induced  them 
to  believe  that  we  were  at  no  great  distance  from  the 
Yellow-stone  River.  In  order  to  prevent  delay,  Capt. 


60  OREGON. 

Lewis  determined  to  go  on  by  land  in  search  of  that 
river,  and  make  the  necessary  observations,  so  as  to 
enable  us  to  proceed  immediately  after  the  boats 
should  join  him. 

"  On  leaving  the  party,  he  pursued  his  route  along 
the  foot  of  the  hills  ;  ascending  which,  the  wide  plains 
watered  by  the  Missouri  and  the  Yellow-stone  spread 
themselves  before  his  eye,  occasionally  varied  with 
the  wood  of  the  banks,  enlivened  by  the  windings  of 
the  two  rivers,  and  animated  by  vast  herds  of  buffa- 
loes, deer,  elk,  and  antelope. " 

X 

NATURAL   HISTORY. 

"May,  1805.  —  We  reached  the  mouth  of  a  river 
flowing  from  the  north,  which,  from  the  unusual  num- 
ber of  porcupines  near  it,  we  called  Porcupine  River. 
These  animals  are  so  careless  a-nd  clumsy,  that  we  can 
approach  very  near  without  disturbing  them  as  they 
are  feeding  on  the  young  willows.  The  porcupine  is 
common  in  all  parts  of  the  territory,  and  for  its  quills 
is  held  in  high  estimation  by  the  Indians.  It  is  inter- 
esting to  see  with  how  much  ingenuity,  and  in  how 
many  various  forms,  the  Indians  manufacture  these 
quills  into  ornamental  work,  such  as  moccasons,  belts, 
and  various  other  articles." 


THE  MARCH  RESUMED.  61 

WOLVES. 

"  The  wolves  are  very  numerous,  and  of  two  spe- 
cies. First,  the  small  wolf,  or  burrowing  dog  of  the 
prairies,  which  is  found  in  almost  all  the  open  plains. 
It  is  of  an  intermediate  size,  between  the  fox  and  dog, 
very  delicately  formed,  fleet  and  active.  The  ears 
are  large,  erect,  and  pointed;  the  head  long  and 
pointed,  like  that  of  a  fox ;  the  tail  long  and  bushy ; 
the  hair  and  fur  of  a  pale  reddish-brown,  and  much 
coarser  than  that  of  the  fox.  These  animals  usually 
associate  in  bands  of  ten  or  twelve,  and  are  rarely,  if 
ever,  seen  alone ;  not  being  able  singly  to  attack  a 
deer  or  antelope.  They  live,  and  rear  their  young,  in 
burrows,  which  they  fix  near  some  pass  much  fre- 
quented by  game,  and  sally  out  in  a  body  against  any 
animal  which  they  think  they  can  overpower,  but,  on 
the  slightest  alarm,  retreat  to  their  burrows,  making 
a  noise  exactly  like  that  of  a  small  dog. 

"  The  second  species  is  lower,  shorter  in  the  legs, 
and  thicker,  than  the  Atlantic  wolf.  They  do  not 
burrow,  nor  do  they  bark,  but  howl ;  and  they  fre- 
quent the  woods  and  plains,  and  skulk  along  the 
herds  of  buffaloes,  in  order  to  attack  the  weary  or 
wounded." 


02  OREGON. 

ELK. 

"Among  the  animals  of  the  deer  kind,  the  elk  is  the 
largest  and  most  majestic.  It  combines  beauty  with 
magnitude  and  strength;  and  its  large,  towering 
horns  give  it  an  imposing  appearance.  Its  senses 
are  so  keen  in  apprehension,  that  it  is  difficult  to 
be  approached ;  and  its  speed  in  flight  is  so  great, 
that  it  mocks  the  chase.  Its  flesh  resembles  beef, 
but  is  less  highly  flavored,  and  is  much  sought  for  by 
the  Indians  and  hunters.  Its  skin  is  esteemed,  and 
much  used  in  articles  of  clothing  and  for  moccasons." 

BEAVERS. 

"  We  saw  many  beavers  to-day.  The  beaver  seems 
to  contribute  very  much  to  the  widening  of  the  river 
and  the  formation  of  islands.  They  begin  by  dam- 
ming up  the  channels  of  about  twenty  yards  width 
between  the  islands.  This  obliges  the  river  to  seek 
another  outlet ;  and,  as  soon  as  this  is  effected,  the 
channel  stopped  by  the  beaver  becomes  filled  with 
mud  and  sand.  The  industrious  animal  is  thus  driven 
to  another  channel,  which  soon  shares  the  same  fate ; 
till  the  river  spreads  on  all  sides,  and  cuts  the  pro- 
jecting points  of  land  into  islands. 


THE  MARCH  RESUMED.  63 

"  The  beaver  dams  differ  in  shape,  according  to 
the  nature  of  the  place  in  which  they  are  built.  If  the 
water  in  the  river  or  creek  have  but  little  motion,  the 
dam  is  almost  straight ;  but,  when  the  current  is  more 
rapid,  it  is  always  made  with  a  considerable  curve, 
convex  toward  the  stream.  The  materials  made  use 
of  are  drift-wood,  green  willows,  birch,  and  poplars, 
if  they  can  be  got ;  also  mud  and  stones,  intermixed 
in  such  a  manner  as  must  evidently  contribute  to  the 
strength  of  the  dam.  In  places  which  have  been  long 
frequented  by  beavers  undisturbed,  their  dams,  by 
frequent  repairing,  become  a  solid  bank,  capable  of 
resisting  a  great  force  both  of  water  and  ice  ;  and  as 
the  willow,  poplar,  and  birch  generally  take  root,  and 
shoot  up,  they,  by  degrees,  form  a  kind  of  regular 
planted  hedge,  in  some  places  so  tall  that  birds 
build  their  nests  among  the  branches.  The  beaver- 
houses  are  constructed  of  the  same  materials  as  their 
dams,  and  are  always  proportioned  in  size  to  the  num- 
ber of  inhabitants,  which  seldom  exceeds  four  old 
and  six  or  eight  young  ones.  The  houses  are  of  a 
much  ruder  construction  than  their  dams :  for,  not- 
withstanding the  sagacity  of  these  animals,  it  has 
never  been  observed  that  they  aim  at  any  other  con- 
venience in  their  house  than  to  have  a  dry  place  to  lie 


64  OREGON. 

on  ;  and  there  they  usually  eat  their  victuals,  such  as 
they  take  out  of  the  water.  Their  food  consists  of 
roots  of  plants,  like  the  pond-lily,  which  grows  at  the 
bottom  of  the  lakes  and  rivers.  They  also  eat  the 
bark  of  trees,  particularly  those  of  the  poplar,  birch, 
and  willow. 

"  The  instinct  of  the  beavers  leading  them  to  live  in 
associations,  they  are  in  an  unnatural  position,  when, 
in  any  locality,  their  numbers  are  so  much  reduced  as 
to  prevent  their  following  this  instinct.  The  beaver 
near  the  settlement  is  sad  and  solitary :  his  works 
have  been  swept  away,  his  association  broken  up, 
and  he  is  reduced  to  the  necessity  of  burrowing  in 
the  river-bank,  instead  of  building  a  house  for  himself. 
Such  beavers  are  called  i  terriers.'  One  traveller 
says  that  these  solitaries  are  also  called  l  old  bache- 
lors^ " 

THE  WHITE,   BROWN,   OR  GRISLY  BEAR. 

"  April  2&.  T—  All  these  names  are  given  to  the  same 
species,  which  probably  changes  in  color  with  the  sea- 
son, or  with  the  time  of  life.  Of  the  strength  and 
ferocity  of  this  animal,  the  Indians  give  dreadful  ac- 
counts. They  never  attack  him  but  in  parties  of  six 
or  eight  persons,  and,  even  then,  are  often  defeated 
with  the  loss  of  some  of  the  party. 


THE    MARCH  RESUMED.  65 

"  May  18.  —  One  of  our  men  who  had  been  suffered 
to  go  ashore  came  running  to  the  boats  with  cries 
and  every  symptom  of  terror.  As  soon  as  he  could 
command  his  breath,  he  told  us,  that,  about  a  mile 
below,  he  had  shot  a  white  bear,  which  immediately 
turned  and  ran  towards  him,  but,  being  wounded, 
had  not  been  able  to  overtake  him.  Capt.  Lewis,  with 
seven  men,  went  in  search  of  the  bear,  and,  hav- 
ing found  his  track,  followed  him  by  the  blood  for  a 
mile,  came  up  with  him,  and  shot  him  with  two  balls 
through  the  skull.  He  was  a  monstrous  animal,  and 
a  most  formidable  enemy.  Our  man  had  shot  him 
through  the  centre  of  the  lungs:  yet  the  bear 
had  pursued  him  furiously  for  half  a  mile ;  then  re- 
turned more  than  twice  that  distance,  and,  with  his 
talons,  dug  himself  a  bed  in  the  earth,  two  feet  deep 
and  five  feet  long,  and  was  perfectly  alive  when  they 
found  him,  which  was  at  least  two  hours  after  he  re- 
ceived the  wound.  The  fleece  and  skin  of  the  bear 
were  a  heavy  burden  for  two  men;  and  the  oil 
amounted  to  eight  gallons. 

"  The  wonderful  power  of  life  of  these  animals,  add- 
ed to  their  great  strength,  renders  them  very  formi- 
dable. Their  very  track  in  the  mud  or  sand,  which 
we  have  sometimes  found  eleven  inches  long  and 


Ob  OREGON. 

seven  and  a  quarter  wide,  exclusive  of  the  talons,  is 
alarming ;  and  we  had  rather  encounter  two  Indiana 
than  a  single  brown  bear.  There  is  no  chance  of 
killing  them  by  a  single  shot,  unless  the  ball  is  sent 
through  the  brain;  and  this  is  very  difficult  to  be 
done,  on  account  of  two  large  muscles  which  cover 
the  side  of  the  forehead,  and  the  sharp  projection 
of  the  frontal  bone,  which  is  very  thick." 

NOTE. 

Their  strength  is  astonishingly  great.  Lieut.  Stein  of  the 
dragoons,  a  man  of  undoubted  veracity,  told  me  he  saw  some 
buffaloes  passing  near  some  bushes  where  a  grisly  bear  lay  con- 
cealed :  the  bear,  with  one  stroke,  tore  three  ribs  from  a  buf- 
falo, and  left  it  dead.  — Parker. 

Although  endowed  with  such  strength,  and  powers  of  destruc- 
tion, the  grisly  bear  is  not  disposed  to  begin  the  attack.  Mr. 
Drummond,  a  later  traveller,  states,  that,  in  his  excursions  over 
the  Rocky  Mountains,  he  had  frequent  opportunity  of  observ- 
ing the  manners  of  these  animals ;  and  it  often  happened,  that 
in  turning  the  point  of  a  rock,  or  sharp  angle  of  a  valley,  he 
came  suddenly  upon  one  or  more  of  them.  On  such  occasions 
they  reared  on  their  hind-legs,  and  made  a  loud  noise  like  a 
person  breathing  quick,  but  much  harsher.  He  kept  his 
ground,  without  attempting  to  molest  them  ;  and  they  on  their 
part,  after  attentively  regarding  him  for  some  time,  generally 
wheeled  round,  and  galloped  off:  though,  from  their  known  dis- 
position, there  is  little  doubt  but  he  would  have  been  torn  in 


THE   MARCH  RESUMED,  67 

THE  BLACK  BEAE. 

"  The  black  bear,  commoD  in  the  United  States,  is 
scarcely  more  than  half  the  size  of  the  grisly  bear. 
Its  favorite  food  is  berries  of  various  kinds  ;  but, 
when  these  are  not  to  be  procured,  it  lives  upon 
roots,  insects,  fish,  eggs,  and  such  birds  and  quadru- 

• 

peds  as  it  can  surprise.  It  passes  the  winter  in  a 
torpid  state,  selecting  a  spot  for  its  den  under  a  fallen 
tree,  and,  having  scratched  away  a  portion  of  the  soil, 
retires  to  the  place  at  the  commencement  of  a  snow- 
storm, when  the  snow  soon  furnishes  it  with  a  close, 
warm  covering.  Its  breath  makes  a  small  opening  in 
the  den,  and  the  quantity  of  hoar-frost  which  gathers 
round  the  hole  serves  to  betray  its  retreat  to  the 
hunter.  In  more  southern  districts,  where  the  timber 
is  of  larger  size,  bears  often  shelter  themselves  in  hol- 
low trees." 

BUFFALOES. 

"  The  buffalo  is  about  as  large  as  our  domestic  cat- 
tle ;  and  their  long,  shaggy,  woolly  hair,  which  covers 

pieces,  had  he  lost  his  presence  of  mind  and  attempted  to  fly. 
When  he  discovered  them  at  a  distance,  he  often  frightened 
them  away  by  beating  on  a  large  tin  box  in  which  he  carried 
his  specimens  of  plants. 


68  OREGON. 

their  head,  neck,  and  shoulders,  gives  them  a  formi- 
dable appearance,  and,  at  a  distance,  something  like 
that  of  the  lion.  In  many  respects,  they  resemble 
our  horned  cattle  ;  are  cloven-footed,  chew  the  cud, 
and  select  the  same  kind  of  food.  Their  flesh  is  in 
appearance  and  taste  much  like  beef,  but  of  superior 
flavor.  Their  heads  are  formed  like  the  ox,  perhaps 
a  little  more  round  and  broad ;  and,  when  they  run, 
they  carry  them  rather  low.  Their  horns,  ears, 
and  eyes,  as  seen  through  their  shaggy  hair,  appear 
small,  and,  cleared  from  their  covering,  are  not  large. 
Their  legs  and  feet  are  small  and  trim ;  the  fore-legs 
covered  with  the  long  hair  of  the  shoulders,  as  low 
down  as  the  knee.  Though  their  figure  is  clumsy  in 
appearance,  they  run  swiftly,  and  for  a  long  time 
without  much  slackening  their  speed ;  and,  up  steep 
hills  or  mountains,  they  more  than  equal  the  best 
horses.  They  unite  in  herds,  and,  when  feeding, 
scatter  over  a  large  space  ;  but,  when  fleeing  from 
danger,  they  collect  into  dense  columns  :  and,  having 
once  laid  their  course,  they  are  not  easily  diverted 
from  it,  whatever  may  oppose.  So  far  are  they  from 
being  a  fierce  or  revengeful  animal,  that  they  are  very 
shy  and  timid  ;  and  in  no  case  did  we  see  them  offer 
to  make  an  attack  but  in  self-defence,  and  then  they 


THE    MARCH   RESUMED:  69 

always  sought  the  first  opportunity  to  escape.  When 
they  run,  they  lean  alternately  from  side  to  side.  They 
are  fond  of  rolling  upon  the  ground  like  horses,  which 
is  not  practised  by  our  domestic  cattle.  This  is  so 
much  their  diversion,  that  large  places  are  found 
without  grass,  and  considerably  excavated  by  them." 

NOTE. 

Rev.  Mr.  Parker  thus  describes  a  buffalo-hunt :  — 
"  To-day  we  unexpectedly  saw  before  us  a  large  herd  of  buf- 
faloes. All  halted  to  make  preparation  for  the  chase.  The 
young  men,  and  all  the  good  hunters,  prepared  themselves,  se- 
lected the  swiftest  horses,  examined  the  few  guns  they  had,  and 
also  took  a  supply  of  arrows  with  their  bows.  They  advanced 
towards  the  herd  of  buffaloes  with  great  caution,  lest  they 
should  frighten  them  before  they  should  make  a  near  approach, 
and  also  to  reserve  the  power  of  their  horses  for  the  chase,  when 
it  should  be  necessary  to  bring  it  into  full  requisition.  When 
the  buffaloes  took  the  alarm,  and  fled,  the  rush  was  made,  each 
Indian  selecting  for  himself  the  one  to  which  he  happened  to 
come  nearest.  All  were  in  swift  motion,  scouring  the  valley. 
A  cloud  of  dust  began  to  rise ;  firing  of  guns,  anc\  shooting  of 
arrows,  followed  in  close  succession.  Soon,  here  and  there,  buf- 
faloes were  seen  prostrated ;  and  the  women,  who  followed  close 
in  the  rear,  began  the  work  of  securing  the  acquisition,  and  the 
men  were  away  again  in  pursuit  of  the  flying  herd.  Those  in 
the  chase,  when  as  near  as  two  rods,  shoot  and  wheel,  expecting 
the  wounded  animal  to  turn  upon  them.  The  horses  seemed  to 
understand  the  way  to  avoid  danger.  As  soon  as  the  wounded 


70  OREGON. 

INDIAN  METHOD  OP  HUNTING  THE  BUFFALO, 

"May  30,  1805.  —  We  passed  a  precipice  about 
one  hundred  and  twenty  feet  high,  under  which  lay 
scattered  the  fragments  of  at  least  a  hundred  car- 
casses of  buffaloes.  These  buffaloes  had  been  chased 
down  the  precipice  in  a  way  very  common  on  the 
Missouri,  and  by  which  vast  herds  are  destroyed  in 
a  moment.  The  mode  of  hunting  is  to  select  one  of 
the  most  active  and  fleet  young  men,  who  is  dis- 
guised by  a  buffalo-skin  round  his  body  ;  the  skin  of 
the  head,  with  the  ears  and  horns,  fastened  on  his 
own  head  in  such  a  way  as  to  deceive  the  buffaloes. 
Thus  dressed,  he  fixes  himself  at  a  convenient  dis- 
tance between  a  herd  of  buffaloes  and  any  of  the 
river  precipices,  which  sometimes  extend  for  some 
miles.  His  companions,  in  the  mean  time,  get  in  the 
rear  and  side  of  the  herd,  and,  at  a  given  signal,  show 
themselves,  and  advance  towards  the  buffaloes.  They 
instantly  take  the  alarm ;  and,  finding  the  hunters 
beside  them,  they  run  toward  the  disguised  Indian, 
or  decoy,  who  leads  them  on,  at  full  speed,  toward 

animal  flies  again,  the  chase  is  renewed  ;  and  such  is  the  alter- 
nate wheeling  and  chasing,  until  the  buffalo  sinks  beneath  his 
wounds." 


THE   MARCH  RESUMED.  71 

the  river ;  when,  suddenly  securing  himself  in  some 
crevice  of  the  cliff  which  he  had  previously  fixed  on, 
the  herd  is  left  on  the  brink  of  the  precipice.  It  is 
then  in  vain  for  the  foremost  to  retreat,  or  even  to 
stop.  They  are  pressed  on  by  the  hindmost  rank, 
who,  seeing  no  danger  but  from  the  hunters,  goad  on 
those  before  them,  till  the  whole  are  precipitated 
over  the  cliff,  and  the  shore  is  covered  with  their 
dead  bodies.  Sometimes,  in  this  perilous  adventure, 
the  Indian  decoy  is  either  trodden  under  foot,  or, 
missing  his  footing  in  the  cliff,  is  urged  down  the 
precipice  by  the  falling  herd." 

WHICH  IS  THE  TRUE  RIVER? 

"  June  3,  1805.  —  We  came  to  for  the  night,  for  the 
purpose  of  examining  in  the  morning  a  large  river 
which  enters  opposite  to  us.  It  now  became  an  in- 
teresting question,  which  of  those  two  streams  is  what 
the  Indians  call  Ahmateahza,  or  the  Missouri,  which, 
they  tell  us,  has  its  head  waters  very  near  to  the  Co- 
lumbia. On  our  right  decision  much  of  the  fate  of 
the  expedition  depends ;  since,  if,  after  ascending  to 
the  Rocky  Mountains  or  beyond  them,  we  should 
find  that  the  river  we  have  been  tracing  does  not 
come  near  the  Columbia,  and  be  obliged  to  turn  back, 


72  OREGON. 

we  shall  have  lost  the  travelling  season,  and  seriously 
disheartened  our  men.  We  determined,  therefore,  to 
examine  well  before  deciding  on  our  course,  and,  for 
this  purpose,  despatched  two  canoes  with  three  men 
up  each  of  the  streams,  with  orders  to  ascertain  the 
width,  depth,  and  rapidity  of  the  currents,  so  as  to 
judge  of  their  comparative  bodies  of  water.  Parties 
were  also  sent  out  by  land  to  penetrate  the  country, 
and  discover  from  the  rising  grounds,  if  possible,  the 
distant  bearings  of  the  two  rivers.  While  they  were 
gone,  the  two  commanders  ascended  together  the 
high  grounds  in  the  fork  of  the  two  rivers,  whence 
they  had  an  extensive  prospect  of  the  surrounding 
country.  On  every  side,  it  was  spread  into  one  vast 
plain  covered  with  verdure,  in  which  innumerable 
herds  of  buffaloes  were  roaming,  attended  by  their 
enemies  the  wolves.  Some  flocks  of  elk  also  were 
seen ;  and  the  solitary  antelopes  were  scattered,  with 
their  young,  over  the  plain.  The  direction  of  the 
rivers  could  not  be  long  distinguished,  as  they  were 
soon  lost  in  the  extent  of  the  plain. 

"  On  our  return,  we  continued  our  examination. 
The  width  of  the  north  branch  is  two  hundred  yards ; 
that  of  the  south  is  three  hundred  and  seventy- 
two.  The  north,  though  narrower,  is  deeper  than  the 


THE  MARCH  RESUMED.  73 

south  :  its  waters  also  are  of  the  same  whitish-brown 
color,  thickness,  and  turbidness  as  the  Missouri. 
They  run  in  the  same  boiling  and  roaring  manner 
which  has  uniformly  characterized  the  Missouri ; 
and  its  bed  is  composed  of  some  gravel,  but  princi- 
pally mud.  The  south  fork  is  broader,  and  its  waters 
are  perfectly  transparent.  The  current  is  rapid,  but 
the  surface  smooth  and  unruffled  ;  and  its  bed  is  com- 
posed of  round  and  flat  smooth  stones,  like  those  of 
rivers  issuing  from  a  mountainous  country. 

"  In  the  evening,  the  exploring  parties  returned, 
after  ascending  the  rivers  in  canoes  for  some  distance, 
then  Continuing  on  foot,  just  leaving  themselves  time 
to  return  by  night.  Their  accounts  were  far  from 
deciding  the  important  question  of  our  future  route  ; 
and  we  therefore  determined  each  of  us  to  ascend 
one  of  the  rivers  during  a  day  and  a  half's  march,  or 
farther,  if  necessary  for  our  satisfaction. 

"Tuesday,  June  4,  1805.  —  This  morning,  Capt. 
Lewis  and  Capt.  Clarke  set  out,  each  with  a  small 
party,  by  land,  to  explore  the  two  rivers.  Capt.  Lewis 
traced  the  course  of  the  north  fork  for  fifty-nine  miles, 
and  found,  that,  for  all  that  distance,  its  direction  was 
northward ;  and,  as  the  latitude  we  were  now  in  was 


74  OK  EG  ON. 

47°  24',  it  was  highly  improbable,  that,  by  going  far- 
ther north,  we  should  find  between  this  and  the  Sas- 
catchawan  any  stream  which  can,  as  the  Indians  as- 
sure us  the  Missouri  does,  possess  a  navigable  cur- 
rent for  some  distance  within  the  Rocky  Mountains. 

"  These  considerations,  with  others  drawn  from  the 
observations  of  Capt.  Clarke  upon  the  south  branch, 
satisfied  the  chiefs  that  the  South  River  was  the  true 
Missouri ;  but  the  men  generally  were  of  a  contrary 
opinion,  and  much  of  their  belief  depended  upon  Cru- 
satte,  an  experienced  waterman  on  the  Missouri,  who 
gave  it  as  his  opinion  that  the  north  fork  was  the 
main  river.  In  order  that  nothing  might  be  omitted 
which  could  prevent  our  falling  into  error,  it  was 
agreed  that  one  of  us  should  ascend  the  southern 
branch  by  land  until  he  reached  either  the  falls  or 
the  mountains.  In  the  mean  time,  in  order  to  lighten 
our  burdens  as  much  as  possible,  we  determined  to 
deposit  here  all  the  heavy  baggage  which  we  could 
possibly  spare,  as  well  as  some  provisions,  salt,  pow- 
der, and  tools.  The  weather  being  fair,  we  dried  all 
our  baggage  and  merchandise,  and  made  our  deposit, 
or  cache.  Our  cache  is  made  in  this  manner :  In  the 
high  plain  on  the  side  of  the  river,  we  choose  a  dry 


THE  MARCH  RESUMED.  75 

situation,  and,  drawing  a  small  circle  of  about  twenty 
inches  diameter,  remove  the  sod  as  carefully  as  pos- 
sible. The  hole  is  then  sunk  perpendicularly  a  foot 
deep,  or  more  if  the  ground  be  not  firm.  It  is  now 
worked  gradually  wider  as  it  deepens,  till  at  length  it 
becomes  six  or  seven  feet  deep,  shaped  nearly  like  a 
kettle,  or  the  lower  part  of  a  large  still,  with  the  bot- 
tom somewhat  sunk  at  the  centre.  As  the  earth  is 
dug,  it  is  carefully  laid  on  a  skin  or  cloth,  in  which  it 
is  carried  away,  and  thrown  into  the  river,  so  as  to 
leave  no  trace  of  it.  A*floor  to  the  cache  is  then 
made  of  dry  sticks,  on  which  is  thrown  hay,  or  a  hide 
perfectly  dry.  The  goods,  being  well  aired  and  dried, 
are  laid  on  this  floor,  and  prevented  from  touching  the 
sides  by  other  dried  sticks,  as  the  baggage  is  stowed 
away.  When  the  hole  is  nearly  full,  a  skin  is  laid 
over  the  goods ;  and,  on  this,  earth  is  thrown,  and 
beaten  down,  until,  with  the  addition  of  the  sod,  the 
whole  is  on  a  level  with  the  ground,  and  there  remains 
no  appearance  of  an  excavation.  Careful  measure- 
ments are  taken  to  secure  the  ready  recovery  of  the 
cache  on  the  return ;  and  the  deposit  is  left  in  perfect 
confidence  of  finding  every  thing  safe  and  sound  after 
the  lapse  of  months,  or  even  years," 


76  OREGON. 

THE   FALLS    OP  THE    MISSOURI. 

"  June  12.  —  This  morning,  Capt.  Lewis  set  out 
with  four  men  on  an  exploration,  to  ascend  the  south- 
ern branch,  agreeably  to  our  plan.  He  left  the  bank 
of  the  river  in  order  to  avoid  the  deep  ravines, 
which  generally  extend  from  the  shore  to  a  distance 
of  two  or  three  miles  in  the  plain.  On  the  second 
day,  having  travelled  about  sixty  miles  from  the  point 
of  departure,  on  a  sudden  their  ears  were  saluted 
with  the  agreeable  sound^bf  falling  water ;  and,  as 
they  advanced,  a  spray  which  seemed  driven  by  the 
wind  rose  above  the  plain  like  a  column  of  smoke, 
and  vanished  in  an  instant.  Towards  this  point,  Capt. 
Lewis  directed  his  steps ;  and  the  noise,  increasing  as 
he  approached,  soon  became  too  powerful  to  be  as- 
cribed to  any  thing  but  the  Great  Falls  of  the  Mis- 
souri. Having  travelled  seven  miles  after  first  hear- 
ing the  sound,  he  reached  the  falls.  The  hills,  as  he 
approached  the  river,  were  difficult  of  transit,  and  two 
hundred  feet  high.  Down  these  he  hurried,  and,  seat- 
ing himself  on  a  rock,  enjoyed  the  spectacle  of  this 
stupendous  object,  which,  ever  since  the  creation, 
had  been  lavishing  its  magnificence  upon  the  desert, 
unseen  by  civilized  man. 


THE   MARCH  RESUMED.  77 

"The  river,  immediately  at  its  cascade,  is  three 
hundred  yards  wide,  and  is  pressed  in  by  a  perpen- 
dicular cliff,  which  rises  to  about  one  hundred  feet, 
and  extends  up  the  stream  for  a  mile.  On  the  other 
side,  the  bluff  is  also  perpendicular  for  three  hundred 
yards  above  the  falls.  For  ninety  or  a  hundred 
yards  from  the  left  cliff,  the  water  falls  in  one  smooth, 
even  sheet,  over  a  precipice  eighty  feet  in  height. 
The  remaining  part  of  the  river  rushes  with  an  ac- 
celerated current,  but,  being  received  as  it  falls  by 
irregular  rocks  below,  forms  a  brilliant  spectacle  of 
perfectly  white  foam,  two  hundred  yards  in  length, 
and  eighty  in  height.  The  spray  is  dissipated  into  a 
thousand  shapes,  on  all  of  which  the  sun  impresses 
the  brightest  colors  of  the  rainbow.  The  principal 
cascade  is  succeeded  by  others  of  less  grandeur,  but 
of  exceeding  beauty  and  great  variety,  for  about 
twenty  miles  in  extent."  * 

A  PORTAGE. 

"June  21.  —  Having  reached  the  falls,  we  found 
ourselves  obliged  to  get  past  them  by  transporting 
our  boats  overland  by  what  is  called  a  portage.  The 

*  Dimensions  of  Niagara  Falls,  — American,  960  feet  wide,  162  feet 
high;  English,  700  feet  wide,  150  feet  high. 


78  OREGON. 

distance  was  eighteen  miles.  It  was  necessary  to 
construct  a  truck  or  carriage  to  transport  the  boats ; 
and  the  making  of  the  wheels  and  the  necessary 
framework  took  ten  days.  The  axle-trees,  made  of 
an  old  mast,  broke  repeatedly,  and  the  cottonwood 
tongues  gave  way ;  so  that  the  men  were  forced  to 
carry  as  much  baggage  as  they  could  on  their  backs. 
The  prickly  pear  annoyed  them  much  by  sticking 
through  their  moccasons.  It  required  several  trips  to 
transport  all  the  canoes  and  baggage ;  and,  though  the 
men  put  double  soles  to  their  moccasons,  the  prickly 
pear,  and  the  sharp  points  of  earth  formed  by  the 
trampling  'of  the  buffaloes  during  the  late  rains, 
wounded  their  feet ;  and,  as  the  men  were  laden  as 
heavily  as  their  strength  would  permit,  the  crossing 
was  very  painful.  They  were  obliged  to  halt  and 
rest  frequently ;  and,  at  almost  every  stopping-place, 
they  would  throw  themselves  down,  and  fall  asleep  in 
an  instant.  Yet  no  one  complained,  and  they  went 
on  with  cheerfulness. 

"  Having  decided  to  leave  here  one  of  the  pirogues, 
we  set  to  work  to  fit  up  a  boat  of  skins,  upon  a  frame 
of  iron  which  had  been  prepared  at  the  armory  at 
Harper's  Ferry.  It  was  thirty-six  feet  long,  four  feet 
and  a  half  wide  at  top,  and  twenty-six  inches  wide 


THE    MARCH  RESUMED.  79 

at  bottom.  It  was  with  difficulty  we  found  the  ne- 
cessary timber  to  complete  it,  even  tolerably  straight 
sticks,  four  and  a  half  feet  long.  The  sides  were 
formed  of  willow-bark,  and,  over  this,  elk  and  buffalo 
skins." 

A    NAREOW    ESCAPE. 

"  June  29.  —  Capt.  Clarke,  having  lost  some  notes 
and  remarks  which  he  had  made  on  first  ascending 
the  river,  determined  to  go  up  along  its  banks  in 
order  to  supply  the  deficiency.  He  had  reached  the 
falls,  accompanied  by  his  negro-servant  York,  and  by 
Chaboneau,  the  half-breed  Indian  interpreter,  and 
his  wife  with  her  young  child.  On  his  arrival  there,  he 
observed  a  dark  cloud  in  the  west,  which  threatened 
rain;  and  looked  around  for  some  shelter.  About  a 
quarter  of  a  mile  above  the  falls  he  found  a  deep  ra- 
vine, where  there  were  some  shelving  rocks,  under 
which  they  took  refuge.  They  were  perfectly  shel- 
tered from  the  rain,  and  therefore  laid  down  their 
guns,  compass,  and  other  articles  which  they  carried 
with  them.  The  shower  was  at  first  moderate ;  it 
then  increased  to  a  heavy  rain,  the  effects  of  which 
they  did  not  feel.  Soon  after,  a  torrent  of  rain  and 


80  OREGON. 

hail  descended.     The  rain  seemed  to   fall  in  a  solid 
mass,  and,  instantly  collecting  in  the   ravine,  came 
rolling  down  in  a  dreadful  torrent,  carrying  the  mud 
and  rocks,  and  every  thing  that  opposed  it.     Capt. 
Clarke  fortunately  saw  it  a  moment  before  it  reached 
them,  and  springing  up,  with  his  gun  in  his  left  hand, 
with  his  right  he  clambered  up  the  steep  bluff,  push- 
ing on  the  Indian  woman  with  her  child  in  her  arms. 
Her  husband,  too,  had  seized  her  hand,  and  was  pull- 
ing her  up  the  hill,  but  was  so  terrified  at  the  danger, 
that,  but  for  Capt.  Clarke,  he  would  have  been  lost, 
with  his  wife  and  child.     So  instantaneous  was  the 
rise  of  the  water,  that,  before  Capt.  Clarke  had  se- 
cured his  gun   and  begun  to  ascend  the  bank,  the 
water  was  up  to  his  waist ;  and  he  could  scarce  get 
up  faster  than  it  rose,  till  it  reached  the  height  of  fif- 
teen feet,  with  a  furious  current,  which,  had  they 
waited  a  moment  longer,  would  have  swept  them  into 
the  river,  just  above  the  falls,  down  which  they  must 
inevitably  have  been  carried.    As  it  was,  Capt.  Clarke 
lost  his  compass,  Chaboneau  his  gun,  shot-pouch,  and 
tomahawk ;  and  the  Indian  woman  had  just  time  to 
grasp  her  child  before  the  net  in  which  it  lay  was 
carried  down  the  current." 


THE    MARCH   RESUMED.  81 


PROGRESS  RESUMED. 

"  July  4.  —  The  boat  was  now  completed,  except 
what  was  in  fact  the  most  difficult  part,  —  the  making 
her  seams  secure.  Having  been  unsuccessful  in  all 
our  attempts  to  procure  tar,  we  have  formed  a  com- 
position of  pounded  charcoal  with  beeswax  and  buffa- 
lo-tallow to  supply  its  place.  If  this  resource  fail 
us,  it  will  be  very  unfortunate,  as,  in  every  other  re- 
spect, the  boat  answers  our  purpose  completely.  Al- 
though not  quite  dry,  she  can  be  carried  with  ease  by 
five  men :  she  is  very  strong,  and  will  carry  a  load  of 
eight  thousand  pounds,  with  her  complement  of  men. 

"  July  9.  —  The  boat  having  now  become  sufficient- 
ly dry,  we  gave  it  a  coat  of  the  composition,  then  a 
second,  and  launched  it  into  the  water.  She  swam 
perfectly  well.  The  seats  were  then  fixed,  and  the 
oars  fitted.  But  after  a  few  hours'  exposure  to  the 
wind,  which  blew  with  violence,  we  discovered  that 
nearly  all  the  composition  had  separated  from  the  skins, 
so  that  she  leaked  very  much.  To  repair  this  misfor- 
tune without  pitch  was  impossible;  and,  as  none  of 
that  article  was  to  be  procured,  we  were  obliged  to 
abandon  her,  after  having  had  so  much  labor  in  the 
construction. 


82  OREGON. 

"  It  now  becomes  necessary  to  provide  other  means 
for  transporting  the  baggage  which  we  had  intended 
to  stow  in  her.  For  this  purpose,  we  shall  want  two 
canoes  ;  but  for  many  miles  we  have  not  seen  a  single 
tree  fit  to  be  used  for  that  purpose.  The  hunters, 
however,  report  that  there  is  a  low  ground  about 
eight  miles  above  us  by  land,  and  more  than  twice 
that  distance  by  water,  in  which  we  may  probably 
find  trees  large  enough.  Capt.  Clarke  has  therefore 
determined  to  set  out  by  land  for  that  place,  with  ten 
of  the  best  workmen,  who  will  be  occupied  in  build- 
ing the  canoes,  till  the  rest  of  the  party,  after  taking 
the  boat  to  pieces  and  making  the  necessary  deposits, 
shall  transport  the  baggage,  and  join  them  with  the 
other  six  canoes. 

"  Capt.  Clarke  accordingly  proceeded  on  eight 
miles  by  land ;  the  distance  by  water  being  twenty- 
three  miles.  Here  he  found  two  cottonwood-trees, 
and  proceeded  to  convert  them  into  boats.  The  rest 
of  the  party  took  the  iron  boat  to  pieces,  and  deposit- 
ed it  in  a  cache,  or  hole,  with  some  other  articles  of 
less  importance. 

"July  11.  —  Sergeant  Ordway,  with  four  canoes 
and  eight  men,  set  sail  in  the  morning  to  the  place 


THE    MARCH  RESUMED.  83 

where  Capt.  Clarke  had  fixed  his  camp.  The  canoes 
were  unloaded  and  sent  back,  and  the  remainder  of 
the  baggage  in  a  second  trip  was  despatched  to  the 
upper  camp. 

"  July  15.  —  We  rose  early,  embarked  all  our  bag- 
gage on  board  the  canoes,  which,  though  eight  in 
number,  were  heavily  laden,  and  at  ten  o'clock  set  out 
on  our  journey. 

"July  16.  —  We  had  now  arrived  at  the  point 
where  the  Missouri  emerges  from  the  Rocky  Moun- 
tains. The  current  of  the  river  becomes  stronger  as 
we  advance,  and  the  spurs  of  the  mountain  approach 
towards  the  river,  which  is  deep,  and  not  more  than 
seventy  yards  wide.  The  low  grounds  are  now  but 
a  few  yards  in  width ;  yet  they  furnish  room  for  an 
Indian  road,  which  winds  under  the  hills  on  the  north 
side  of  the  river.  The  general  range  of  these  hills 
is  from  south-east  to  north-west ;  and  the  cliffs  them- 
selves are  about  eight  hundred  feet  above  the  water, 
formed  almost  entirely  of  a  hard  black  rock,  on  which 
are  scattered  a  few  dwarf  pine  and  cedar  trees. 

"  As  the  canoes  were  heavily  laden,  all  the  men  not 
employed  in  working  them  walked  on  shore.  The 
navigation  is  now  very  laborious.  The  river  is  deep, 


84  OREGON. 

but  with  little  current ;  the  low  grounds  are  very  nar- 
FOW  ;  the  cliffs  are  steep,  and  hang  over  the  river  so 
much,  that,  in  places,  we  could  not  pass  them,  but 
were  obliged  to  cross  and  recross  from  one  side  of 
the  river  to  the  other  in  order  to  make  our  way." 


CHAPTER    VII. 


s 

JOURNEY  CONTINUED. 


JULY  4.  —  Since  our  arrival  at  the  falls,  we 
have  repeatedly  heard  a  strange  noise  coming 
from  the  mountains,  in  a  direction  a  little  to  the  north 
of  west.  It  is  heard  at  different  periods  of  the  day 
and  night,  sometimes  when  the  air  is  perfectly  still 
and  without  a  cloud ;  and  consists  of  one  stroke  only, 
or  of  five  or  six  discharges  in  quick  succession.  It 
is  loud,  and  resembles  precisely  the  sound  of  a  six- 
pound  piece  of  ordnance,  at  the  distance  of  three 
miles.  The  Minnetarees  frequently  mentioned  this 
noise,  like  thunder,  which  they  said  the  mountains 
made  ;  but  we  had  paid  no  attention  to  them,  believ- 
ing it  to  be  some  superstition,  or  else  a  falsehood. 
The  watermen  also  of  the  party  say  that  the  Pawnees 
and  Ricaras  give  the  same  account  of  a  noise  heard 
in  the  Black  Mountains,  to  the  westward  of  them. 
The  solution  of  the  mystery,  given  by  the  philosophy 

85 


86  OREGON. 

of  the  watermen,  is,  that  it  is  occasioned  by  the 
bursting  of  the  rich  mines  of  silver  confined  within 
the  bosom  of  the  mountain.* 

"  An  elk  and  a  beaver  are  all  that  were  killed  to-day : 
the  buffaloes  seem  to  have  withdrawn  from  our  neigh- 
borhood. We  contrived,  however,  to  spread  a  com- 
fortable table  in  honor  of  the  day ;  and  in  the  evening 
gave  the  men  a  drink  of  spirits,  which  was  the  last  of 
our  stock." 

VEGETATION. 

"July  15.  —  We  find  the  prickly-pear  —  one  of  the 
greatest  beauties,  as  well  as  one  of  the  greatest 
inconveniences,  of  the  plains  —  now  in  full  bloom. 
The  sunflower  too,  a  plant  common  to  every  part  of 
the  Missouri,  is  here  very  abundant,  and  in  bloom. 
The  Indians  of  the  Missouri,  and  more  especially  those 
who  do  not  cultivate  maize,  make  great  use  of  this 
plant  for  bread,  and  in  thickening  their  soup.  They 
first  parch,  and  then  pound  it  between  two  stones 

*  There  are  many  stories,  from  other  sources,  confirmatory  of  these 
noises  in  mountainous  districts.  One  solution,  suggested  by  Humboldt, 
—  who  does  not,  however,  record  the  fact  as  of  his  own  observation,  — 
is,  that  "  this  curious  phenomenon  announces  a  disengagement  of  hydro- 
gen, produced  by  a  bed  of  coal  in  a  state  of  combustion."  This  solu- 
tion is  applicable  only  to  mountains  which  contain  coal,  unless  chemical 
changes  in  other  minerals  might  be  supposed  capable  of  producing  a 
similar  effect. 


THE  MOUNTAIN  RAM,      .  87 

until  it  is  reduced  to  a  fine  meal.  Sometimes  they 
add  a  portion  of  water,  arid  drink  it  thus  diluted  ;  at 
other  times  they  add  a  sufficient  proportion  of  mar- 
mow-fat  to  reduce  it  to  the  consistency  of  common 
dough,  and  eat  it  in  that  manner.  This  last  compo- 
sition we  preferred  to  the  rest,  and  thought  it  at  that 
time  very  palatable. 

"  There  are  also  great  quantities  of  red,  purple,  yel- 
low, and  black  currants.  The  currants  are  very 
pleasant  to  the  taste,  and  much  preferable  to  those 
of  our  gardens.  The  fruit  is  not  so.  acid,  and  has  a 
more  agreeable  flavor." 

THE   BIG-HORNED    OR  MOUNTAIN   RAM. 

"July  18.  —  This  morning  we  saw  a  large  herd  of 
the  big-horned  animals,  who  were  bounding  among 
the  rocks  in  the  opposite  cliff  with  great  agility. 
These  inaccessible  spots  secure  them  from  all  their 
enemies;  and  the  only  danger  they  encounter  is  in 
wandering  among  these  precipices,  where  we  should 
suppose  it  scarcely  possible  for  any  animal  to  stand. 
A  single  false  step  would  precipitate  them  at  least 
five  hundred  feet  into  the  river. 

"The«game  continues'  abundant.  We  killed  to-day 
the  largest  male  elk  we  have  yet  seen.  On  placing 


88  OREGON. 

it  in  its  natural,  erect  position,  we  found  that  it 
measured  five  feet  three  inches  from  'the  point  of 
the  hoof  to  the  top  of  the  shoulder. 

"  The  antelopes  are  yet  lean.  This  fleet  and  quick- 
sighted  animal  is  generally  the  victim  of  its  curiosity. 
When  they  first  see  the  hunters,  they  run  with  great 
velocity.  If  the  hunter  lies  down  on  the  ground,  and 
lifts  up  his  arm,  his  hat,  or  his  foot,  the  antelope 
returns  on  a  light  trot  to  look  at  the  object,  and 
sometimes  goes  and  returns  two  or  three  times,  till 
at  last  he  approaches  within  reach  of  the  rifle.  So, 
too,  they  sometimes  leave  their  flock  to  go  and  look 
at  the  wolves,  who  crouch  down,  and,  if  the  antelope 
be  frightened  at  first,  repeat  the  same  manoeuvre, 
and  sometimes  relieve  each  other,  till  they  decoy  the 
antelope  from  his  party  near  enough  to  seize  it." 

THE  GATES  OP  THE  ROCKY  MOUNTAINS. 

"  July  20.  —  During  the  day,  in  the  confined  valley 
through  which  we  are  passing,  the  heat  is  almost 
insupportable ;  yet,  whenever  we  obtain  a  glimpse  of 
the  lofty  tops  of  the  mountains,  we  are  tantalized 
with  a  view  of  the  snow.  A  mile  and  a  half  farther 
on,  the  rocks  approach  the  river  on  both  sides,  form- 
ing a  most  sublime  and  extraordinary  spectacle.  For 


THE  GATES  OF  THE  ROCKY  MOUNTAINS.          89 

six  miles,  these  rocks  rise  perpendicularly  from  the 
water's  edge  to  the  height  of  nearly  twelve  hundred 
feet.  They  are  composed  of  a  black  granite  near  the 
base ;  but  judging  from  its  lighter  color  above,  and 
from  fragments  that  have  fallen  from  it,  we  suppose 
the  upper  part  to  be  flint,  of  a  yellowish-brown  and 
cream  color.  Nothing  can  be  imagined  more  tre- 
mendous than  the  frowning  darkness  of  these  rocks, 
which  project  over  the  river,  and  menace  us  with 
destruction.  The  river,  one  hundred  and  fifty  yards 
in  width,  seems  to  have  forced  its  channel  down  this 
solid  mass :  but  so  reluctantly  has  it  given  way,  that, 
during  the  whole  distance,  the  water  is  very  deep 
even  at  the  edges ;  and,  for  the  first  three  miles,  there 
is  not  a  spot,  except  one  of  a  few  yards  in  extent,  on 
which  a  man  could  stand  between  the  water  and  the 
towering  perpendicular  of  the  mountain.  The  con- 
vulsion of  the  passage  must  have  been  terrible ; 
since,  at  its  outlet,  there  are  vast  columns  of  rock 
torn  from  the  mountain,  which  are  strewed  on  both 
sides  of  the  river,  the  trophies,  as  it  were,  of  victory. 
We  were  obliged  to  go  on  some  time  after  dark,  not 
being  able  to  find  a  spot  large  enough  to  encamp  on. 
This  extraordinary  range  of  rocks  we  called  the  Gates 
of  the  Rocky  Mountains." 


90  OREGON. 

NATURAL   PRODUCTIONS.     * 

"  July  29.  —  This  morning  the  hunters  brought  in 
some  fat  deer  of  the  long-tailed  red  kind,  which  are 
the  only  kind  we  have  found  at  this  place.  There 
are  numbers  of  the  sandhill-cranes  feeding  in  the 
meadows.  We  caught  a  young  one,  which,  though  it 
had  nearly  attained  its  full  growth,  could  not  fly.  It 
is  very  fierce,  and  strikes  a  severe  blow  with  its  beak. 
The  kingfisher  has  become  quite  common  this  side 
of  the  falls ;  but  we  have  seen  none  of  the  summer 
duck  since  leaving  that  place.  Small  birds  are  also 
abundant  in  the  plains.  Here,  too,  are  great  quan- 
tities of  grasshoppers,  or  crickets ;  and,  among  other 
animals,  large  ants,  with  a  reddish-brown  body  and 
legs,  and  a  black  head,  which  build  little  cones  of 
gravel  ten  or  twelve  inches  high,  without  a  mixture 
of  sticks,  and  with  but  little  earth.  In  the  river  we 
see  a  great  abundance  of  fish,  but  cannot  tempt  them 
to  bite  by  any  thing  on  our  hooks." 

THE  FORKS   OF  THE  MISSOURI. 

"July  28,  1805.— -From  the  height  of  a  limestone 
cliff,  Capt.  Lewis  observed  the  three  forks  of  the 
Missouri,  of  which  this  river  is  one.  The  middle  and 


THE  FORKS  OF  THE  MISSOURI.  91 

south-west  forks  unite  at  half  a  mile  above  the  en- 
trance of  tne  south-east  fork.  The  country  watered 
by  these  rivers,  as  far  as  the  eye  could  command,  was 
a  beautiful  combination  of  meadow  and  elevated  plain, 
covered  with  a  rich  grass,  and  possessing  more  tim- 
ber than  is  usual  on  the  Missouri.  A  range  of  high 
mountains,  partially  covered  with  snow,  is  seen  at  a 
considerable  distance,  running  from  south  to  west. 

"  To  the  south-east  fork  the  name  of  Gallatin  was 
assigned,  in  honor  of  the  Secretary  of  the  Treasury. 
On  examining  the  other  two  streams,  it  was  difficult 
to  decide  which  was  the  larger  or  real  Missouri : 
they  are  each  ninety  yards  wide,  and  similar  in  char- 
acter and  appearance.  We  were  therefore  induced 
to  discontinue  the  name  of  Missouri,  and  to  give  to 
the  south-west  branch  the  name  of  Jefferson,  in  honor 
of  the  President  of  the  United  States  and  the  project- 
or of  the  enterprise ;  and  called  the  middle  branch 
Madison,  after  James  Madison,  Secretary  of  State. 

"  July  30.  —  We  reloaded  our  canoes,  and  began  to 
ascend  Jefferson  River.  The  river  soon  became  very 
crooked;  the  current,  too,  is  rapid,  impeded  with 
shoals,  which  consist  of  coarse  gravel.  The  islands 
are  numerous.  On  the  7th  of  August,  we  had,  with 
much  fatigue,  ascended  the  river  sixty  miles,  when 


92  OREGON. 

we  reached  the  junction  of  a  stream  from  the  north- 
west, which  we  named  Wisdom  River.  We  con- 
tinued, however,  to  ascend  the  south-east  branch, 
which  we  were  satisfied  was  the  true  continuation 
of  the  Jeffe'rson." 

THE  SHOSHONEES,   OB  SNAKE  INDIANS. 

"July  28.  —  We  are  now  very  anxious  to  see  the 
Snake  Indians.  After  advancing  for  several  hundred 
miles  into  this  wild  and  mountainous  country,  we 
may  soon  expect  that  the  game  will  abandon  us. 
With  no  information  of  the  route,  we  may  be  unable 
to  find  a  passage  across  the  mountains  when  we 
reach  the  head  of  the  river,  at  least  such  an  one  as 
will  lead  us  to  the  Columbia.  And,  even  were  we 
so  fortunate  as  to  find  a  branch  of  that  river,  the 
timber  which  we  have  hitherto  seen  in  these  moun- 
tains does  not  promise  us  any  wood  fit  to  make 
canoes ;  so  that  our  chief  dependence  is  on  meeting 
some  tribe  from  whom  we  may  procure  horses. 

"  Sacajawea,  our  Indian  woman,  informs  us  that  we 
are  encamped  on  the  precise  spot  where  her  country- 
men, the  Snake  Indians,  had  their  huts  five  years 
ago,  when  the  Minnetarees  came  upon  them,  killed 
most  of  the  party,  and  carried  her  away  prisoner. 


THE  SHOSHONEES.  93 

She  does  not,  however,  show  any  distress  at  these 
recollections,  nor  any  joy  at  the  prospect  of  being 
restored  to  her  country;  for  she  seems  to  possess 
the  folly,  or  the  philosophy,  of  not  suffering  her 
feelings  to  extend  beyond  the  anxiety  of  having 
plenty  to  eat,  and  trinkets  to  wear. 

"Aug.  9.  —  Persuaded  of  the  absolute  necessity  of 
procuring  horses  to  cross  the  mountains,  it  was  de- 
termined that  one  of  us  should  proceed  in  the  morn- 
ing to  the  head  of  the  river,  and  penetrate  the 
mountains  till  he  found  the  Shoshonees,  or  some 
other  nation,  who  could  assist  us  in  transporting  our 
baggage.  Immediately  after  breakfast,  Capt.  Lewis 
took  Drewyer,  Shields,  and  McNeal ;  and,  slinging 
their  knapsacks,  they  set  out,  with  a  resolution  to 
meet  some  nation  of  Indians  before  they  returned, 
however  long  it  might  be. 

"Aug.  11.  —  It  was  not  till  the  third  day  after  com- 
mencing their  search  that  they  met  with  any  success. 
Capt.  Lewis  perceived  with  the  greatest  delight,  at 
the  distance  of  two  miles,  a  man  on  horseback  coming 
towards  them.  On  examining  him  with  the  glass, 
Capt.  Lewis  saw  that  he  was  of  a  different  nation 
from  any  we  had  hitherto  met.  He  was  armed  with 
a  bow  and  a  quiver  of  arrows,  and  mounted  on  an 


94  OREGON. 

elegant  horse  without  a  saddle ;  while  a  small  string, 
attached  to  the  under-jaw,  answered  as  a  bridle. 
Convinced  that  he  was  a  Shoshonee,  and  knowing 
how  much  our  success  depended  upon  the  friendly 
offices  of  that  nation,  Capt.  Lewis  was  anxious  to 
approach  without  alarming  him.  He  therefore  ad- 
vanced towards  the  Indian  at  his  usual  pace.  When 
they  were  within  a  mile  of  each  other,  the  Indian 
suddenly  stopped.  Capt.  Lewis  immediately  followed 
his  example  ;  took  his  blanket  from  his  knapsack,  and, 
holding  it  with  both  hands  at  the  two  corners,  threw 
it  above  his  head,  and  unfolded  it  as  he  brought  it  to 
the  ground,  as  if  in  the  act  of  spreading  it.  This 
signal,  which  originates  in  the  practice  of  spreading 
a  robe  or  a  skin  as  a  seat  for  guests  to  whom  they 
wish  to  show  kindness,  is  the  universal  sign  of  friend- 
ship among  the  Indians.  As  usual,  Capt.  Lewis  re- 
peated this  signal  three  times.  Still  the  Indian  kept 
his  position,  and  looked  with  an  air  of  suspicion  on 
Drewyer  and  Shields,  who  were  now  advancing  on 
each  side.  Capt.  Lewis  was  afraid  to  make  any  sig- 
nal for  them  to  halt,  lest  he  should  increase  the 
suspicions  of  the%  Indian,  who  began  to  be  uneasy ; 
and  they  were  too  distant  to  hear  his  voice.  He 
therefore  took  from  his  pack  some  beads,  a  looking- 


THE  SHOSHONEES.  .  95 

glass,  and  a  few  trinkets,  which  he  had  brought  for 
the  purpose ;  and,  leaving  his  gun,  advanced  unarmed 
towards  the  Indian,  who  remained  in  the  same  posi- 
tion till  Capt.  Lewis  came  within  two  hundred  yards 
of  him,  when  he  turned  his  horse,  and  began  to  move 
off  slowly.  Capt.  Lewis  then  called  out  to  him,  as 
loud  as  he  could, '  Tabba  bone/  —  which,  in  the  Sho- 
shonee  language,  means  White  man;  but,  looking 
over  his  shoulder,  the  Indian  kept  his  eyes  on  Drew- 
yer  and  Shields,  who  were  still  advancing,  till  Capt. 
Lewis  made  a  signal  to  them  to  halt.  This,  Drewyer 
obeyed;  but  Shields  did  not  observe  it,  and  still 
went  forward.  The  Indian,  seeing  Drewyer  halt, 
turned  his  horse  about,  as  if  to  wait  for  Capt.  Lewis, 
who  had  now  reached  within  one  hundred  and  fifty 
paces,  repeating  the  words, l  Tabba  bone,'  and  holding 
up  the  trinkets  in  his  hand ;  at  the  same  time  strip- 
ping up  his  sleeve  to  show  that  he  was  white.  The 
Indian  suffered  him  to  advance  within  one  hundred 
paces,  then  suddenly  turned  his  horse,  and,  giving 
him  the  whip,  leaped  across  the  creek,  and  disap- 
peared in  an  instant  among  the  willows.  They  fol- 
lowed his  track  four  miles,  but  could  not  get  sight  of 
him  again,  nor  find  any  encampment  to  which  he 
belonged. 


96  OREGON. 

"Meanwhile  the  party  in  the  canoes  advanced 
slowly  up  the  river  till  they  came  to  a  large  island, 
to  which  they  gave  the  name  of  Three-thousand- 
mile  Island,  on  account  of  its  being  at  that  distance 
from  the  mouth  of  the  Missouri." 


CHAPTER    VIII. 

THE  SOURCES   OF   THE  MISSOURI   AND   COLUMBIA. 

yi  UGr.  12, 1805.  —  Capt.  Lewis  decided  to  advance 
-*-*-  along  the  foot  of  the  mountains,  hoping  to  find 
a  road  leading  across  them.  At  the  distance  of  four 
miles  from  his  camp,  he  found  a  large,  plain,  Indian 
road,  which  entered  the  valley  from  the  north-east. 
Following  this  road  towards  the  south-west,  the  val- 
ley, for  the  first  five  miles,  continued  in  the  same 
direction ;  then  the  main  stream  turned  abruptly  to 
the  west,  through  a  narrow  bottom  between  the 
mountains.  We  traced  the  stream,  which  gradually 
became  smaller,  till,  two  miles  farther  up,  it  had  so 
diminished,  that  one  of  the  men,  in  a  fit  of  enthusi- 
asm, with  one  foot  on  each-  side  of  the  rivulet,  thankea 
God  that  he  had  lived  to  bestride  the  Missouri.  Four 
miles  from  thence,  we  came  to  the  spot  where,  from 

7  97. 


98  OREGON. 

the  foot  of  a  mountain,  issues  the  remotest  water 
of  the  mighty  river 

"  We  had  now  traced  the  Missouri  to  its  source, 
which  had  never  before  been  seen  by  civilized  man ; 
and  as  we  quenched  our  thirst  at  the  pure  and  icy 
fountain,  and  stretched  ourselves  by  the  brink  of  the 
little  rivulet  which  yielded  its  distant  and  modest 
tribute  to  the  parent  ocean,  we  felt  rewarded  for 
all  our  labors. 

"  We  left  reluctantly  this  interesting  spot,  and, 
pursuing  the  Indian  road,  arrived  at  the  top  of  a 
ridge,  from  whence  we  saw  high  mountains,  partially 
covered  with  snow,  still  to  the  west  of  us.  The  ridge 
on  which  we  stood  formed,  apparently,  the  dividing- 
line  between  the  waters  of  the  Pacific  and  Atlantic 
Oceans.  We  followed  a  descent  much  steeper  than 
that  on  the  eastern  side,  and,  at  the  distance  of 
three-quarters  of  a  mile,  reached  a  handsome,  bold 
creek  of  cold,  clear  water,  running  to  the  westward. 
We  stopped  for  a  moment,  to  taste,  for  the  first  time, 
the  waters  of  the  Columbia ;  and  then  followed  the 
road  across  hills  and  valleys,  till  we  found  a  spring, 
and  a  sufficient  quantity  of  dry  willow-brush  for  fuel ; 
and  there  halted  for  the  night." 


MEETING    WITH  INDIANS.  99 

THEY  MEET  WITH  INDIANS. 

"Aug.  13.  —  Very  early  in  the  morning,  Capt. 
Lewis  resumed  the  Indian  road,  which  led  him  in  a 
western  direction,  through  an  open,  broken  country. 
At  five  miles'  distance,  he  reached  a  creek  about  ten 
yards  wide,  and,  on  rising  the  ^hill  beyond  it,  had  a 
view  of  a  handsome  little  valley  about  a  mile  in 
width,  through  which  they  judged,  from  the  appear- 
ance of  the  timber,  that  a  stream  probably  flowed. 
On  a  sudden,  they  discovered  two  women,  a  man,  and 
some  dogs,  on  an  eminence  about  a  mile  before  them. 
The  strangers  viewed  them  apparently  with  much 
attention ;  and  then  two  of  them  sat  down,  as  if  to 
await  Capt.  Lewis's  arrival.  He  went  on  till  he  had 
reached  within  about  half  a  mile ;  then  ordered  his 
party  to  stop,  put  down  his  knapsack  and  rifle,  and, 
unfurling  the  flag,  advanced  alone  towards  the  In- 
dians. 

"  The  women  soon  retreated  behind  the  hill ;  but 
the  man  remained  till  Capt.  Lewis  came  within  a 
hundred  yards  of  him,  when  he,  too,  went  off,  though 
Capt.  Lewis  called  out  <  Tabba  bone  '  ('  White  man '), 
loud  enough  to  be  heard  distinctly.  The  dogs,  how- 
ever, were  less  shy,  and  came  close  to  him.  He 


100  OREGON. 

therefore  thought  of  tying  a  handkerchief  with  some 
beads  round  their  necks,  and  then  to  let  them  loose, 
to  convince  the  fugitives  of  his  friendly  intentions ; 
but  the  dogs  would  not  suffer  him  to  take  hold  of 
them,  and  soon  left  him. 

"  He  now  made  a  signal  to  the  men,~who  joined  him ; 
and  then  all  followed  ^he  track  of  the  Indians,  which 
led  along  a  continuation  of  the  same  road  they  had 
been  travelling.  It  was  dusty,  and  seemed  to  have 
been  much  used  lately  both  by  foot-passengers  and 
horsemen. 

"  They  had  not  gone  along  it  more  than  a  mile, 
when,  on  a  sudden,  they  saw  three  female  Indians, 
from  whom  they  had  been  concealed  by  the  deep 
ravines  which  intersected  the  road,  till  they  were 
now  within  thirty  paces  of  them.  One  of  them,  a 
young  woman,  immediately  took  to  flight :  the  other 
two,  an  old  woman  and  little  girl,  seeing  we  were 
too  near  for  them  to  escape,  sat  on  the  ground,  and, 
holding  down  their  heads,  seemed  as  if  reconciled  to 
the  death  which  they  supposed  awaited  them.  Capt. 
Lewis  instantly  put  down  his  rifle,  and,  advancing 
towards  them,  took  the  woman  by  the  hand,  raised 
her  up,  and  repeated  the  words,  '  Tabba  bone/  at 
the  same  time  stripping  up  his  sleeve  to  show  that 


MEETING   WITH  INDIANS.  101 

he  was  a  white  man ;  for  his  hands  and  face  had 
become  by  exposure  quite  as  dark  as  their  own. 

"  She  appeared  immediately  relieved  from  her 
alarm ;  and,  Drewyer  and  Shields  now  coming  up, 
Capt.  Lewis  gave  her  some  beads,  a  few  awls,  pewter 
mirrors,  and  a  little  paint,  and  told  Drewyer  to  re- 
quest the  woman  to  recall  her  companion,  who  had 
escaped  to  some  distance,  and,  by  alarming  the  In- 
dians, might  cause  them  to  attack  him,  without  any 
time  for  explanation.  She  did  as  she  was  desired, 
and  the  young  woman  returned  readily.  Capt.  Lewis 
gave  her  an  equal  portion  of  trinkets,  and  painted 
the  tawny  cheeks  of  all  three  of  them  with  vermil- 
ion, which,  besides  its  ornamental  effect,  has  the 
advantage  of  being  held  among  the  Indians  as  em- 
blematic of  peace. 

"  After  they  had  become  composed,  he  informed 
them  by  signs  of  his  wish  to  go  to  their  camp  in 
order  to  see  their  chiefs  and  warriors,.  They  readily 
complied,  and  conducted  the  party  along  the  same 
road  down  the  river.  In  this  way  they  marched 
two  miles,  when  they  met  a  troop  of  nearly  sixty 
warriors,  mounted  on  excellent  horses,  riding  at  full 
speed  towards  them.  As  they  advanced,  Capt.  Lewis 
put  down  his  gun,  and  went  with  the  flag  about  fifty 


102  OREGON. 

paces  in  advance.  The  chief,  who,  with  two  men, 
was  riding  in  front  of  the  main  body,  spoke  to  the 
women,  who  now  explained  that  the  party  was  com- 
posed of  white  men,  and  showed  exultingly  the 
presents  they  had  received.  The  three  men  imme- 
diately leaped  from  their  horses,  came  up  to  Capt. 
Lewis,  and  embraced  him  with  great  cordiality, — 
putting  their  left  arm  over  his  right  shoulder,  and 
clasping  his  back,  —  applying  at  the  same  time  their 
left  cheek  to  his,  and  frequently  vociferating,  '  Ah- 
hi-e  V  —  'I  am  glad!  I  am  glad! ' 

"The  whole  body  of  warriors  now  came  forward, 
and  our  men  received  the  caresses,  and  no  small 
share  of  the  grease  and  paint,  of  their  new  friends. 
After  this  fraternal  embrace,  Capt.  Lewis  lighted  a 
pipe,  and  offered  it  to  the  Indians,  who  had  now 
seated  themselves  in  a  circle  around  our  party.  But, 
before  they  would  receive  this  mark  of  friendship, 
they  pulled  off  their  moccasons ;  a  custom  which,  we 
afterwards  learned,  indicates  their  sincerity  when 
they  smoke  with  a  stranger. 

"  After  smoking  a  few  pipes,  some  trifling  presents 
were  distributed  among  them,  with  which  they  seemed 
very  much  pleased,  particularly  with  the  blue  beads 
and  the  vermilion. 


MEETING   WITH  INDIANS.  103 

"  Capt.  Lewis  then  informed  the  chief  that  the 
object  of  his  visit  was  friendly,, and  should  be  ex- 
plained as  soon  as  he  reached  their  camp ;  but  that 
in  the  mean  time,  as  the  sun  was  oppressive,  and  no 
water  near,  he  wished  to  go  there  as  soon  as  possible. 
They  now  put "  on  their  moccasons ;  and  their  chief, 
whose  name  was  Cameawait,  made  a  short  speech  to 
the  warriors.  Capt,  Lewis  then  gave  him  the  flag, 
which  he  informed  him  was  the  emblem  of  peace, 
and  that  now  and  for  the  future  it  was  to  be  the 
pledge  of  union  between  us  and  them.  The  chief 
then  moved  on,  our  party  followed,  and  the  rest  of 
the  warriors  brought  up  the  rear. 

"  At  the  distance  of  four  miles  from  where  they 
had  first  met  the  Indians,  they  reached  the  camp, 
which  was  in  a  handsome,  level  meadow  on  the  bank 
of  the  river.  Here  they  were  introduced  into  a 
leathern  lodge  which  was  assigned  for  their  recep- 
tion. After  being  seated  on  green  boughs  and  ante- 
lope-skins, one  of  the  warriors  pulled  up  the  grass  in 
the  centre  of  the  lodge,  so  as  to  form  a  vacant  circle 
of  two  feet  in*  diameter,  in  which  he  kindled  a  fire. 
The  chief  then  produced  his  pipe  and  tobacco ;  the 
warriors  all  pulled  off  their  moccasons,  and  our  party 
were  requested  to  take  'off  their  own.  This  being 


104  OREGON. 

done,  the  chief  lighted  his  pipe  at  the  fire,  and  then, 
retreating  from  it,  began  a  speech  several  minutes 
long ;  at  the  end  of  which  he  pointed  the  stem  of 
his  pipe  towards  the  four  cardinal  points  of  the 
heavens,  beginning  with  the  east,  and  concluding 
with  the  north.  After  this  ceremony,  he  presented 
the  stem  in  the  same  way  to  Capt.  Lewis,  who,  sup- 
posing it  an  invitation  to  smoke,  put  out  his  hand  to 
receive  the  pipe ;  but  the  chief  drew  it  back,  and 
continued  to  repeat  the  same  offer  three  times ;  after 
which  he  pointed  the  stem  to  the  heavens,  then 
took  three  whiffs  himself,  and  presented  it  again  to 
Capt.  Lewis.  Finding  that  this  last  offer  was  in  good 
earnest,  he  smoked  a  little,  and  returned  it.  The 
pipe  was  then  held  to  each  of  the  white  men,  and, 
after  they  had  taken  a  few  whiffs,  was  given  to  the 
warriors. 

"  The  bowl  of  the  pipe  was  made  of  a  dense,  trans- 
parent, green  stone,  very  highly  polished,  about  two 
and  a  half  inches  long,  and  of  an  oval  figure ;  the 
bowl  being  in  the  same  direction  with  the  stem. 
The  tobacco  is  of  the  same  kind  witft  that  used  by 
the  Minnetarees  and  Mandans  of  the  Missouri.  The 
Shoshonees  do  not  cultivate  this  plant,  but  obtain  it 
from  the  bands  who  live  farther  south. 


MEETING   WITH  INDIANS.  105 

"  The  ceremony  of  smoking  being  concluded,  Capt. 
Lewis  explained  to  the  chief  the  purposes  of  his  visit ; 
and,  as  by  this  time  all  the  women  and  children  of 
the  camp  had  gathered  around  the  lodge  to  indulge 
in  a  view  of  the  first  white  men  they  had  ever  seen, 
he  distributed  among  them  the  remainder  of  the 
small  articles  he  had  brought  with  him. 

"  It  was  now  late  in  the  afternoon,  and  our  party 
had  tasted  no  food  since  the  night  before.  On  ap- 
prising the  chief  of  this  fact,  he  said  that  he  had 
nothing  but  berries  to  eat,  and  presented  some  cakes 
made  of  service-berries  and  choke-cherries  which 
had  been  dried  in  the  sun.  Of  these,  Capt.  Lewis 
and  his  companions  made  as  good  a  meal  as  they 
were  able. 

"  The  chief  informed  him  that  the  stream  which 
flowed  by  them  discharged  itself,  at  the  distance  of 
half  a  day's  march,  into  another  of  twice  its  size ; 
but  added  that  there  was  no  timber  there  suitable  for 
building  canoes,  and  that  the  river  was  rocky  and 
rapid.  The  prospect  of  going  on  by  land  was  more 
pleasant;  for  there  were  great  numbers  of  horses 
feeding  round  the  camp,  which  would  serve  to'  trans- 
port our  stores  over  the  mountains. 

"An  Indian  invited  Capt.  Lewis   into  his   lodge, 


106  OREGON. 

and  gave  him  a  small  morsel  of  boiled  antelope,  and 
a  piece  of  fresh  salmon,  roasted.  This  was  the  first 
salmon  he  had  seen,  and  perfectly  satisfied  him  that 
he  was  now  on  the  waters  of  the  Pacific. 

"  On  returning  to  the  lodge,  he  resumed  his  con- 
versation with  the  chief;  after  which  he  was  enter- 
tained with  a  dance  by  the  Indians.  The  music  and 
dancing  —  which  were  in  no  respect  different  from 
those  of  the  Missouri  Indians  —  continued  nearly  all 
night ;  but  Capt.  Lewis  retired  to  rest  about  twelve 
o'clock,  when  the  fatigues  of  the  day  enabled  him  to 
sleep,  though  he  was  awaked  several  times  by  the 
yells  of  the  dancers." 


CHAPTER  IX. 

THE   PARTY   IN   THE   BOATS. 

A  UGUST,  1805.—- While  these  things  were  occur- 
ring  to  Capt.  Lewis,  the  party  in  the  boats  were 
slowly  and  laboriously  ascending  the  river.  It  was 
very  crooked,  the  bends  short  and  abrupt,  and  ob- 
structed by  so  many  shoals,  over  which  the  canoes 
had  to  be  dragged,  that  the  men  were  in  the  water 
three-fourths  of  the  day.  They  saw  numbers  of 
otters,  some  beavers,  antelopes,  ducks,  geese,  and 
cranes ;  but  they  killed  nothing  except  a  single  deer. 
They  caught,  however,  some  very  fine  trout.  The 
weather  was  cloudy  and  cool ;  and  at  eight  o'clock  a 
shower  of  rain  fell. 

Next  day,  as  the  morning  was  cold,  and  the  men 
stiff  and  sore  from  the  fatigues  of  yesterday,  they 
did  not  set  out  till  seven  o'clock.  The  river  was 
shallow,  and,  as  it  approached  the  mountains,  formed 
one  continued  rapid,  over  which  they  were  obliged 

107 


108  OREGON. 

to  drag  the  boats  with  great  labor  and  difficulty. 
By  these  means,  they  succeeded  in  making  fourteen 
miles;  but  this  distance  did  not  exceed  more  than 
six  and  a  half  in  a  straight  line. 

Several  successive  days  were  passed  in  this  man- 
ner (the  daily  progress  seldom  exceeding  a  dozen 
miles),  while  the  party  anxiously  expected  to  be 
rejoined  by  Capt.  Lewis  and  his  men,  with  intelli- 
gence of  some  relief  by  the  aid  of  friendly  Indians. 
In  the  mean  time,  Capt.  Lewis  was  as  anxiously  ex- 
pecting their  arrival,  to  confirm  the  good  impressions 
he  had  made  on  the  Indians,  as  well  as  to  remove 
some  lurking  doubts  they  still  felt  as  to  his  inten- 
tions. 

CAPT.    LEWIS    AMONG    THE   SHO&HONEES. 

Aug.  14.  —  In  order  to  give  time  for  the  boats  to 
reach  the  forks  of  Jefferson  River,  Capt.  Lewis  deter- 
mined to  remain  where  he  was,  and  obtain  all  the 
information  he  could  with  regard  to  the  country. 
Having  nothing  to  eat  but  a  little  flour  and  parched 
meal,  with  the  berries  of  the  Indians,  he  sent  out 
Drewyer  and  Shields,  who  borrowed  horses  of  the 
natives,  to  hunt.  At  the  same  time,  the  young  war- 
riors set  out  for  the  same  purpose. 


CAPT.   LEWIS  AMONG   THE  SIIOSHONEES.         109 

There  are  but  few  elk  or  black-tailed  deer  in  this 
region ;  and,  as  the  common  red  deer  secrete  them- 
selves in  the  bushes  when  alarmed,  they  are  soon 
safe  from  the  arrows  of  the  Indian  hunters,  which 
are  but  feeble  weapons  against  any  animal  which  the 
huntsmen  cannot  previously  run  down.  The  chief 
game  of  the  Shoshonees,  therefore,  is  the  antelope, 
which,  when  pursued,  runs  to  the  open  plains,  where 
the  horses  have  full  room  for  the  chase.  But  such  is 
this  animal's  extraordinary  fleetness  and  wind,  that  a 
single  horse  has  no  chance  of  outrunning  it,  or  tiring 
it  down ;  and  the  hunters  are  therefore  obliged  to 
resort  to  stratagem.  About  twenty  Indians,  mounted 
on  fine  horses,  and  armed  'with  bows  and  arrows,  left 
the  camp.  In  a  short  time,  they  descried  a  herd  of 
ten  antelopes.  They  immediately,  separated  into  little 
squads  of  two  or  three,  and  formed  a  scattered  circle 
round  the  herd  for  five  or  six  miles,  keeping  at  a 
wary  distance,  so  as  not  to  alarm  them  till  they  were 
perfectly  enclosed.  Having  gained  their  positions,  a 
small  party  rode  towards  the  herd ;  the  huntsman 
preserving  his  seat  with  wonderful  tenacity,  and  the 
horse  his  footing,  as  he  ran  at  full  speed  over  the 
hills,  ancl  down  the  ravines,  and  along  the  edges 
of  precipices.  They  were  soon  outstripped  by  the 


110  OREGON. 

antelopes,  which,  on  gaining  the  other  limit  of 
the  circle,  were  driven  back,  and  pursued  by  fresh 
hunters.  They  turned,,  and  flew,  rather  than  ran,  in 
another  direction ;  but  there,  too,  they  found  new 
enemies.  In  this  way  they  were  alternately  driven 
backwards  and  forwards,  till  at  length,  notwithstand- 
ing the  skill  of  the  hunters,  they  all  escaped  ;  and 
the  party,  after  running  two  hours,  returned  without 
having  caught  any  thing,  and  their  horses  foaming 
with  sweat.  This  chase,  the  greater  part  of  which 
was  seen  from  the  camp,  formed  a  beautiful  scene ; 
but  to  the  hunters  it  is  exceedingly  laborious,  and 
so  tmproductive,  even  when  they  are  able  to  worry 
the  animal  down  and  shoot  him,  that  forty  or  fifty 
hunters  will  sometimes  be  engaged  for  half  a  day 
without  obtaining  more  than  two  or  three  antelopes. 
Soon  after  they  returned,  our  two  huntsmen  came  in 
with  no  better  success.  Capt.  Lewis  therefore  made 
a  little  paste  with  the  flour,  and  the  addition  of  some 
berries  formed  a  tolerable  repast. 

Having  now  secured  the  good-will  of  Cameah- 
wait,  Capt.  Lewis  informed  him  of  his  wish,  —  that  he 
would  speak  to  the  warriors,  and  endeavor  to  engage 
them  to  accompany  him  to  the  forks  of  Jefierson 
River,  where,  by  this  time,  another  chief,  with  a 


CAPT.   LEWIS  AMONG   THE  SIIOSHONEES.  Ill 

large  party  of  white  men,  were  waiting  his  return. 
He  added,  that  it  would  be  necessary  to  take  about 
thirty  horses  to  transport  the  merchandise ;  that  they 
should  be  well  rewarded  for  their  trouble ;  and  that, 
when  all  the  party  should  have  reached  the  Shosho- 
nee  camp,  they  would  remain  some  time  among  them, 
and  trade  for  horses,  as  well  as  concert  plans  for 
furnishing  them  in  future  with  regular  supplies  of 
merchandise.  Cameahwait  readily  consented  to  do 
as  requested ;  and,  after  collecting  the  tribe  to- 
gether, he  made  a  long  harangue,  and  in  about  an 
hour  and  a  half  returned,  and  told  Capt.  Lewis  that 
they  would  be  ready  to  accompany  him  next  morning. 
Capt.  Lewis  rose  early,  and,  having  eaten  nothing 
yesterday  except  his  scanty  meal  of  flour  and  ber- 
ries, felt  the  pain  of  extreme  hunger.  On  inquiry, 
he  found  that  his  whole  stock  of  provisions  consisted 
of  two  pounds  of  flour.  This  he  ordered  to  be  di- 
vided into  two  equal  parts,  and  one-half  of  it  boiled 
with  the  berries  into  a  sort  of  pudding;  and,  after 
presenting  a  large  share  to  the  chief,  he  and  his 
three  men  breakfasted  on  the*  remainder.  Cameah- 
wait was  delighted  with  this  new  dish.  He  took  a 
little  of  the  flour  in  his  hand,  tasted  it,  and  examined 
it  very  carefully,  asking  if  it  was  made  of  roots. 


112  OREGON. 

Capt.  Lewis  explained  how  it  was  produced,  and  the 
chief  said  it  was  the  best  thing  he  had  eaten  for  a 
long  time. 

Breakfast  being  finished,  Capt.  Lewis  endeavored 
to  hasten  the  departure  of  the  Indians,  who  seemed 
reluctant  to  move,  although  the  chief  addressed  them 
twice  for  the  purpose  of  urging  them.  On  inquiring 
the  reason,  Capt.  Lewis  learned  that  the  Indians 
were  suspicious  that  they  were  to  be  led  into  an 
ambuscade,  and  betrayed  to  their  enemies.  He  ex- 
erted himself  to  dispel  this  suspicion,  and  succeeded 
so  far  as  -to  induce  eight  of  the  warriors,  with  Came- 
ahwait,  to  accompany  him.  It  was  about  twelve 
o'clock  when  his  small  party  left  the  camp,  attended 
by  Cameahwait  and  the  eight  warriors.  At  sunset 
they  reached  the  river,  and  encamped  about  four 
miles  above  the  narrow  pass  between  the  hills,  which 
they  had  noticed  in  their  progress  some  days  before. 
Drewyer  had  been  sent  forward  to  hunt ;  but  he  re- 
turned in  the  evening  unsuccessful;  and  their  only 
supply,  therefore,  was  the  remaining  pound  of  flour, 
stirred  in  a  little  boiling  water,  and  divided  between 
the  four  white  men  and  two  of  the  Indians. 

Next  morning,  as  neither  our  party  nor  the  In- 
dians had  any  thing  to  eat,  Capt.  Lewis  sent  two  of 


CAPT.  LEWIS  AMONG   THE  SHOSHONEES.         113 

his  hunters  out  to  procure  some  provision.  ,  At  the 
same  time,  he  requested  Cameahwait  to  prevent  his 
young  men  from  going  out,  lest,  by  their  noise,  they 
might  alarm  the  game.  This  measure  immediately 
revived  their  suspicions,  and  some  of  them  followed 
our  two  men  to  watch  them.  After  the  hunters  had 
been  gone  about  an  hour,  Capt.  Lewis  mounted,  with 
one  of  the  Indians  behind  him,  and  the  whole  party 
set  out.  Just  then,  they  saw  one  of  the  spies  com- 
ing back  at  full  speed  across  the  plain.  The  chief 
stopped,  and  seemed  uneasy:  the  whole  band  were 
moved  with  fresh  suspicions ;  and  Capt.  Lewis  him- 
self was  anxious,  lest,  by  some  unfortunate  accident, 
some  hostile  tribe  might  have  wandered  that  way. 
The  young  Indian  had  hardly  breath  to  say  a  few 
words  as  he  came  up,  when  the  whole  troop  dashed 
forward  as  fast  as  their  horses  could  carry  them ;  and 
Capt.  Lewis,  astonished  at  this  movement,  was  borne 
along  for  nearly  a  mile,  before  he  learned,  with  great 
satisfaction,  that  it  was  all  caused  by  the  spy's  having 
come  to  announce  that  one  of  the  white  men  had 
killed  a  deer. 

When  they  reached  the  place  where  Drewyer,  in 
cutting  up  the  deer,  had  thrown  out  the  intestines, 
the  Indians  dismounted  in  confusion,  and  ran,  turn- 


114  OREGON. 

bling  over  each  other,  like  famished  dogs :  each  tore 
away  whatever  part  he  could,  and  instantly  began  to 
devour  it.  Some  had  the  liver,  some  the  kidneys: 
in  short,  no  part  on  which  we  are  accustomed  to  look 
with  disgust  escaped  them.  It  was,  indeed,  impossi- 
ble to  see  these  wretches  ravenously  feeding  on  the 
refuse  of  animals,  and  the  blood  streaming  from  their 
mouths,  without  deploring  how  nearly  the  condition 
of  savages  approaches  that  of  the  brute  creation. 
Yet,  though  suffering  with  hunger,  they  did  not 
attempt  to  take  (as  they  might  have  done)  by  force 
the  whole  deer,  but  contented  themselves  with  what 
had  been  thrown  away  by  the  hunter.  Capt.  Lewis 
had  the  deer  skinned,  and,  after  reserving  a  quarter 
of  it,  gave  the  rest  of  the  animal  to  the  chief,  to 
be  divided  among  the  Indians,  who  immediately  de- 
voured the  whole  without  cooking. 

THEY  MEET  THE  BOAT  PARTY. 

As  they  were  now  approaching  the  place  where 
they  had  been  told  they  should  see  the  white  men, 
Capt.  Lewis,  to  guard  against  any  disappointment, 
explained  the  possibility  of  our  men  not  having 
reached  the  forks,  in  consequence  of  the  difficulty 
of  the  navigation ;  so  that,  if  they  should  not  find 


THEY  MEET  THE  BOAT  PARTY.  115 

us  at  that  spot,  they  might  be  assured  of  our  being 
not  far  below.  After  stopping  two  hours  to  let  the 
horses  graze,  they  remounted,  and  rode  on  rapidly, 
making  one  of  the  Indians  carry  the  flag,  so  that  the 
party  in  the  boats  might  recognize  them  as  they 
approached.  To  their  great  mortification,  on  coming 
within  sight  of  the  forks,  no  canoes  were  to  be  seen. 

Uneasy,  lest  at  this  moment  he  should  be  aban- 
doned, and  all  his  hopes  of  obtaining  aid  from  the 
Indians  be  destroyed,  Capt.  Lewis  gave  the  chief 
his  gun,  telling  him,  if  the  enemies  of  his  nation 
were  in  the  bushes,  he  might  defend  himself  with  it ; 
and  that  the  chief  might  shoot  him  as  soon  as  they 
discovered  themselves  betrayed.  The  other  three 
men  at  the  same  time  gave  their  guns  to  the  Indians, 
who  now  seemed  more  easy,  but  still  suspicious. 
Luckily,  he  had  a  hold  on  them  by  other  ties  than 
their  generosity.  He  had  promised  liberal  exchanges 
for  their  horses  ;  but,  what  was  still  more  attractive, 
he  had  told  them  that  one  of  their  country-women, 
who  had  been  taken  by  the  Minnetarees,  accompanied 
the  party  below :  and  one  of  the  men  had  spread  the 
report  of  our  having  with  us  a  man  perfectly  black, 
whose  hair  was  short  and  curled.  This  last  account 
had  excited  a  great  degree  of  curiosity;  arid  they 


116  OREGON. 

seemed  more  desirous  of  seeing  this  monster  than 
of  obtaining  the  most  favorable  barter  for  their 
horses. 

In  the  mean  time,  the  boat  party  under  Capt. 
Clarke,  struggling  against  rapids  and  shallows,  had 
made  their  way  to  a  point  only  four  miles  by  land, 
though  ten  by  water,  from  where  Capt.  Lewis  and 
the  Indians  were.  Capt.  Clarke  had  seen  from  an 
eminence  the  forks  of  the  river,  and  sent  the  hunters 
up.  They  must  have  left  it  only  a  short  time  before 
Capt.  Lewis's  arrival. 

Aug.  17.  —  Capt.  Lewis  rose  early,  and  de- 
spatched Drewyer  and  the  Indian  down  the  river  in 
quest  of  the  boats.  They  had  been  gone  about  two 
hours,  and  the  Indians  were  all  anxiously  waiting 
for  some  news,  when  an  Indian  who  had  straggled 
a  short  distance  down  the  river  returned,  with  a 
report  that  he  had  seen  the  white  men,  who  were 
not  far  below,  and  were  coming  on.  The  Indians 
were  all  delighted ;  and  the  chief,  in  the  warmth 
of  his  affection,  renewed  his  embrace  to  Capt.  Lewis, 
who,  though  quite  as  much  gratified,  would  willingly 
have  spared  that  manifestation  of  it.  The  report 
proved  true.  On  commencing  the  day's  progress, 
Capt.  Clarke,  with  Chaboneau  and  his  wife,  walked 


THEY  MEET  THE  BOAT  PARTY.  117 

by  the  river-side ;  but  they  had  not  gone  more  than 
a  mile,  when  Capt.  Clarke  saw  Sacajawea,  the  Indian 
woma*,  who  was  some  distance  in  advance,  begin  to 
dance,  and  show  every  mark  of  extravagant  joy, 
pointing  to  several  Indians,  whom  he  now  saw  ad- 
vancing on  horseback.  As  they  approached,  Capt. 
Clarke  discovered  Drewyer  among  them,  from  whom 
he  learned  the  situation  of  Capt.  Lewis  and  his 
party.  While  the  boats  were  performing  the  cir- 
cuit, Capt.  Clarke  went  towards  the  forks  with,  the 
Indians,  who,  as  they  went  along,  sang  aloud  with 
the  greatest  appearance  of  delight. 

They  soon  drew  near  the  camp ;  and,  as  they 
approached  it,  a  woman  made  her  way  through  the 
crowd  towards  Sacajawea,  when,  recognizing  each 
other,  they  embraced  with  the  most  tender  affection. 
The  meeting  of  these  two  young  women  had  in  it 
something  peculiarly  touching.  They  had  been  com- 
panions in  childhood,  and,  in  the  war  with  the  Minne- 
tarees,  had  both  been  taken  prisoners  in  the  same 
battle.  They  had  shared  the  same  captivity,  till  one 
had  escaped,  leaving  her  friend  with  scarce  a  hope 
of  ever  seeing  her  again. 

While  Sacajawea  was  renewing  among  the  wo- 
men the  friendships  of  former  days,  Capt.  Clarke 


118  OREGON. 

went  on,  and  was  received  by  Capt.  Lewis  and  the 
chief,  who,  after  the  first  embraces  and  salutations, 
conducted  him  to  a  sort  of  circular  tent  constructed 
of  willow-branches.  Here  he  was  seated  on  a  white 
robe ;  and  the  chief  tied  in  his  hair  six  small  shells 
resembling  pearls,  —  an  ornament  highly  valued  by 
these  people.  After  smoking,  a  conference  was  held, 
Sacajawea  acting  as  interpreter.  Capt.  Lewis  told 
them  he  had  been  sent  to  discover  the  best  route 
by  which  merchandise  could  be  conveyed  to  them, 
and,  since  no  trade  would  be  begun  before  our  re- 
turn, it  was  naturally  desirable  that  we  should  pro- 
ceed with  as  little  delay  as  possible  ;  that  we  were 
under  the  necessity  of  requesting  them  to  furnish  us 
with  horses  to  transport  our  baggage  across  the 
mountains,  and  a  guide  to  show  us  the  route ;  but 
that  they  should  be  amply  remunerated  for  their 
horses,  as  well  as  for  any  other  service  they  should 
render  us.  In  the  mean  time,  our  first  wish  was 
that  they  should  immediately  collect  as  many  horses 
as  were  necessary  to  transport  our  baggage  to  their 
village,  where,  at  our  leisure,  we  would  trade  with 
them  for  as  many  horses  as  they  could  spare. 

The  speech    made    a  favorable    impression.     The 
chief  thanked   us   for   our   friendly   intentions,   and 


THEY  MEET  THE  BOAT  PARTY.        119 

declared  their  willingness  to  render  us  every  ser- 
vice. He  promised  to  return  to  the  village  next 
day,  and  to  bring  all  his  own  horses,  and  to  encour- 
age his  people  to  bring  theirs.  We  then  distributed 
our  presents.  To  Cameahwait  we  gave  a  medal  of 
the  small  size,  with  the  likeness  of  President  Jeffer- 
son, and  on  the  reverse  a  figure  of  hands  clasped, 
with  a  pipe  and  tomahawk.  To  this  were  added 
a  uniform-coat,  a  shirt,  a  pair  of  scarlet  leggings,  a 
lump  of  tobacco,  and  some  small  articles.  Each  of 
the  other  chiefs  received  similar  presents,  excepting 
the  dress-coat.  These  honorary  gifts  were  followed 
by  presents  of  paint,  moccasons,  awls,  knives,  beads, 
and  looking-glasses.  They  had  abundant  sources  of 
surprise  in  all  they  saw.  The  appearance  of  the 
men,  their  arms,  their  clothing,  the  canoes,  the 
strange  looks  of  the  negro,  and  the  sagacity  of  our 
dog,  all  in  turn  shared  their  admiration,  which  was 
raised  to  astonishment  by  a  shot  from  the  air-gun. 
This  was  immediately  pronounced  a  Great  Medicine, 
by  which  they  mean  something  produced  by  the 
Great  Spirit  himself  in  some  incomprehensible  way. 


CHAPTER   X. 

THE  DESCENT  OF  THE   COLUMBIA. 

A  UGUST,  1805.  — Our  Indian  information  as  to 
the  navigation  of  the  Columbia  was  of  a  very 
discouraging  character.  It  was  therefore  agreed 
that  Capt.  Clarke  should  set  off  in  the  morning  with 
eleven  men,  furnished,  besides  their  arms,  with  tools 
for  making  canoes ;  that  he  should  take  Chaboneau 
and  his  wife  to  the  camp  of  the  Shoshonees,  where  he 
was  to  leave  them  to  hasten  the  collection  of  horses  ; 
that  he  was  then  to  lead  his  men  down  to  the  Colum- 
bia ;  and  if  he  found  it  navigable,  and  the  timber  in 
sufficient  quantity,  should  begin  to  build  canoes.  As 
soon  as  he  should  have  decided  on  the  question  of 
proceeding,  whether  down  the  river  or  across  the 
mountains,  he  was  to  send  back  one  of  the  men,  with 
information  of  his  decision,  to  Capt.  Lewis,  who  would 
tarry  meanwhile  at  the  Shoshonee  village. 

Aug.  20.  —  Capt.   Clarke   set   out  at   six   o'clock. 
120 


DESCENT  OF  THE  COLUMBIA.  121 

Passing  through  a  continuation  of  hilly,  broken  coun- 
try, he  met  several  parties  of  Indians.  An  old  man 
among  them  was  pointed  out,  who  was  said  to  know 
more  of  the  nature  of  the  country  north  than  any 
other  person;  and  Capt.  Clarke  engaged  him  as  a 
guide. 

The  first  point  to  ascertain  was  the  truth  of  the 
Indian  information  as  to  the  difficulty  of  descending 
the  river.  For  this  purpose,  Capt.  Clarke  and  his 
men  set  out  at  three  o'clock  in  the  afternoon,  accom- 
panied by  his  Indian  guide.  At  the  distance  of  four 
miles  he  crossed  the  river,  and,  eight  miles  from  the 
camp,  halted  for  the  night.  As  Capt.  Lewis  was  the 
first  white  man  who  had  visited  its  waters,  Capt. 
Clarke  gave  the  stream  the  name  of  Lewis's  River. 

Aug.  23.  —  Capt.  Clarke  set  out  very  early  ;  but 
as  his  route  lay  along  the  steep  side  of  a  mountain, 
over  irregular  and  broken  masses  of  rocks,  which 
wounded  the  horses'  feet,  he  was  obliged  to  proceed 
slowly.  At  the  distance  of  four  miles,  he  reached  the 
river ;  but  the  rocks  here  became  so  steep,  and  pro- 
jected so  far  into  the  stream,  that  there  was  no  mode 
of  passing  except  through  the  water.  This  he  did  for 
some  distance,  though  the  current  was  very  rapid, 
and  so  deep,  that  they  were  forced  to  swim  their 


122  OP  EG  ON. 

horses.  After  following  the  edge  of  the  stream  for 
about  a  mile,  he  reached  a  small  meadow,  below  which 
the  whole  current  of  the  river  beat  against  the  shore 
on  which  he  was,  and  which  was  formed  of  a  solid 
rock,  perfectly  inaccessible  to  horses.  He  therefore 
resolved  to  leave  the  hor'ses  and  the  greater  part  of 
the  men  at  this  place,  and  continue  his  examination 
of  the  river  on  foot,  in  order  to  determine  if  there 
were  any  possibility  of  descending  it  in  canoes. 

With  his  guide  and  three  men  he  proceeded, 
clambering  over  immense  rocks,  and  along  the  sides 
of  precipices  which  bordered  the  stream.  The  river 
presented  a  succession  of  shoals,  neither  of  which 
could  be  passed  with  loaded  canoes ;  and  the  bag- 
gage must  therefore  be  transported  for  considerable 
distances  over  the  steep  mountains,  where  it  would 
be  impossible  to  employ  horses.  Even  the  empty 
boats  must  be  let  down  the  rapids  by  means  of  cords, 
and  not  even  in  this  way  without  great  risk  both  to 
the  canoes  and  the  men. 

Disappointed  in  finding  a  route  by  way  of  the 
river,  Capt.  Clarke  now  questioned  his  guide  more 
particularly  respecting  an  Indian  road  which  came  in 
from  the  north.  The  guide,  who  seemed  intelligent, 
drew  a  map  on  the  sand,  and  represented  this  road  as 


DESCENT  OF  THE  COLUMBIA.  123 

leading*to  a  great  river  where  resided  a  nation  calle'd 
Tushepaws,  who,  having  no  salmon  on  their  river, 
came  by  this  road  to  the  fish-wears  on  Lewis's  River. 
After  a  great  deal  of  conversation,  or  rather  signs, 
Capt.  Clarke  felt  persuaded  that  his  guide  knew  of  a 
road  from  the  Shoshonee  village  they  had  left,  to  the 
great  river  toward  the  north,  without  coming  so  low 
down  as  this,  on  a  road  impracticable  for  horses.  He 
therefore  hastened  to  return  thither,  sending  for- 
ward a  man  on  horseback  with  a  note  to  Capt.  Lewis, 
apprising  him  of  the  result  of  his  inquiries. 

From  the  25th  to  the  29th  of  August,  Capt.  Clarke 
and  his  men  were  occupied  in  their  return  to  the 
Shoshonee  village,  where  Capt.  Lewis  and  party  were 
awaiting  them.  During  their  march,  the  want  of  pro- 
visions was  such,  that  if  it  had  not  been  for  the  liber- 
ality of  the  Indians,  who  gave  them  a  share  of  their 
own  scanty  supplies,  they  must  have  perished.  The 
main  dependence  for  food  was  upon  salmon  and  ber- 
ries. It  was  seldom  they  could  get  enough  of  these 
for  a  full  meal ;  and  abstinence  and  the  strange  diet 
caused  some  sickness.  Capt.  Lewis,  on  the  contrary, 
had  found  the  game  sufficiently  abundant  to  supply 
their  own  party,  and  to  spare  some  to  the  Indians ; 
so  that,  when  their  friends  rejoined  them,  they  had  it 
in  their  power  to  immediately  relieve  their  wants. 


124  OREGON. 

• 
THE   SHOSHONEES. 

The  Shoshonees  are  a  small  tribe  of  the  nation 
called  Snake  Indians,  —  a  vague  denomination,  which 
embraces  at  once  the  inhabitants  of  the  southern 
parts  of  the  Rocky  Mountains,  and  of  the  plains  on 
each  side.  The  Shoshonees,  with  whom  we  now  are, 
amount  to  about  a  hundred  warriors,  and  three  times 
that  number  of  women  and  children.  Within  their 
own  recollection,  they  formerly  lived  in  the  plains ; 
but  they  have  been  driven  into  the  mountains  by  the 
roving  Indians  of  the  Saskatchawan  country,  and  are 
now  obliged  to  visit  only  occasionally  and  by  stealth 
the  country  of  their  ancestors.  From  the  middle  of 
May  to  the  beginning  of  September,  they  reside  on 
the  waters  of  the  Columbia.  During  this  time,  they 
subsist  chiefly  on  salmon ;  and,  as  that  fish  disappears 
on  the  approach  of  autumn,  they  are  obliged  to  seek 
subsistence  elsewhere.  They  then  cross  the  ridge  to 
the  waters  of  the  Missouri,  down  which  they  proceed 
cautiously  till  they  are  joined  by  other  bands  of  their 
own  nation,  or  of  the  Flatheads,  with  whom  they  asso- 
ciate against  the  common  enemy.  Being  now  strong 
in  numbers,  they  venture  to  hunt  buffaloes  in  the 
plains  eastward  of  the  mountains,  near  which  they 


THE  SHOSHONEES.  125 

spend  the  winter,  till  the  return  of  the  salmon  invites 
them  to  the  Columbia. 

In  this  loose  and  wandering  existence^  they  suffer 
the  extremes  of  want :  for  two-thirds  of  the  year  they 
are  forced  to  live  in  the  mountains,  passing  whole 
weeks  without  meat,  and  with  nothing  to  eat  but  a 
few  fish  and  roots. 

Yet  the  Shoshonees  are  not  only  cheerful,  but  gay; 
and  their  character  is  more  interesting  than  that  of 
any  other  Indians  we  have  seen.  They  are  frank  and 
communicative ;  fair  in  their  dealings ;  and  we  have 
had  no  reason  to  suspect  that  the  display  of  our  new 
and  valuable  wealth  has  tempted  them  into  a  single 
act  of  theft.  While  they  have  shared  with  us  the 
little  they  possess,  they  have  always  abstained  from 
begging  any  thing  of  us. 

Their  wealth  is  in  horses.  Of  these  they  have  at 
least  seven  hundred,  among  which  are  about  forty 
colts,  and  half  that  number  of  mules.  The  original 
stock  was  procured  from  the  Spaniards;  but  now  they 
raise  their  own,  which  are  generally  of  good  size,  vig- 
orous, and  patient  of  fatigue  as  well  as  of  hunger. 
Every  warrior  has  one  or  two  tied  to  a  stake  near  his 
hut  day  and  night,  so  as  to  be  always  prepared  for 
action.  The  mules  are  obtained  in  the  course  of 


OREGON. 

trade  from  the  Spaniards  of  California  They  are 
highly  valued.  The  worst  are  considered  as  worth 
the  price  of  two  horses. 

The  Shoshonee  warrior  always  fights  on  horseback. 
He  possesses  a  few  bad  guns,  which  are  reserved  for 
war ;  but  his  common  arms  are  the  bow  and  arrow, 
a  shield,  a  lance,  and  a  weapon  called  pogamogon, 
which  consists  of  a  handle  of  wood,  with  a  stone 

weighing  about  two  pounds,  and  held  in  a  cover  of 

•^ 
leather,  attached  to  the  handle  by  a  leather  thong. 

At  the  other  end  is  a  loop,  which  is  passed  round  the 
wrist,  so  as  to  secure  the  hold  of  the  instrument,  with 
which  they  strike  a  very  severe  blow. 

The  bow  is  made  of  cedar  or  pine,  covered  on  the 
outer  side .  with  sinews  and  glue.  Sometimes  it  is 
made  of  the  horn  of  an  elk,  covered  on  the  back  like 
those  of  wood.  The  arrows  are  more  slender  than 
those  of  other  Indians  we  have  seen.  They  are  kept, 
with  the  implements  for  striking  fire,  in  a  narrow 
quiver  formed  of  different  kinds  of  skin.  It  is  just 
long  enough  to  protect  the  arrows  from  the  weather, 
and  is  fastened  upon  the  back  of  the  wearer  by  means 
of  a  strap  passing  over  the  right  shoulder,  and  under 
the  left  arm.  The  shield  is  a  circular  piece  of  buf- 
falo-skin, about  two  feet  four  inches  in  diameter, 


THE  SHOSHONEES.  127 

ornamented  with  feathers,  with  a  fringe  round  it  of 
dressed  leather,  and  adorned  with  paintings  of  strange 
figures. 

Besides  these,  they  have  a  kind  of  armor,  some- 
thing like  a  coat  of  mail,  which  is  formed  by  a  great 
many  folds  of  antelope-skins,  united  by  a  mixture  of 
glue  and  sand.  With  this  they  cover  their  own  bodies 
and  those  of  their  horses,  and  find  it  impervious  to 
the  arrow. 

The  caparison  of  their  horses  is  a  halter  and  sad- 
dle. The  halter  is  made  of  strands  of  bufialo-hair 
platted  together ;  or  is  merely  a  thong  of  raw  hide, 
made  pliant  by  pounding  and  rubbing.  The  halter  is 
very  long,  and  is  never  taken  from  the  neck  of  the 
horse  when  in  constant  use.  One  end  of  it  is  first 
tied  round  the  neck  in  a  knot,  and  then  brought 
down  to  the  under-jaw,  round  which  it  is  formed  into 
a  simple  noose,  passing  through  the  mouth.  It  is 
then  drawn  up  on  the  right  side,  and  held  by  the 
rider  in  his  left  hand,  while  the  rest  trails  after  him 
to  some  distance.  With  these  cords  dangling  along- 
side of  them,  the  horse  is  put  to  his  full  speed,  with- 
out fear  of  falling ;  and,  when  he  is  turned  to  graze, 
the  noose  is  merely  taken  from  his  mouth. 

The  saddle  is  formed,  like  the  pack-saddles  used  by 


128  OREGON. 

the  French  and  Spaniards,  of  two  flat,  thin  boards, 
which  fit  the  sides  of  the  horse,  and  are  kept  together 
by  two  cross-pieces,  one  before  and  the  other  behind, 
which  rise  to  a  considerable  height,  making  the  sad- 
dle deep  and  narrow.  Under  this,  a  piece  of  buffalo- 
skin,  with  the  hair  on,  is  placed,  so  as  to  prevent  the 
rubbing  of  the  board ;  and,  when  the  rider  mounts, 
he  throws  a  piece  of  skin  or  robe  over  the  saddle, 
which  has  no  permanent  cover.  When  stirrups  are 
used,  they  consist  of  wood  covered  with  leather  ;  but 
stirrups  and  saddles  are  conveniences  reserved  for 
women  and  old  men.  The  young  warriors  rarely  use 
any  thing  except  a  small,  leather  pad  stuffed  with 
hair,  and  secured  by  a  girth  made  of  a  leathern  thong. 
In  this  way,  they  ride  with  great  expertness ;  and 
they  have  particular  dexterity  in  catching  the  horse 
when  he  is  running  at  large.  They  make  a  noose  in 
the  rope,  and  although  the  horse  may  be  at  some  dis- 
tance, or  even  running,  rarely  fail  to  fix  it  on  his  neck; 
and  such  is  the  docility  of  the  animal,  that,  however 
unruly  he  may  seem,  he  surrenders  as  soon  as  he  feels 
the  rope  on  him. 

The  horse  becomes  an  object  of  attachment.  A 
favorite  is  frequently  painted,  and  his  ears  cut  into 
various  shapes.  The  mane  and  tail,  which  are  never 


INDIAN  HORSES  AND  EIDERS.  129 

drawn  nor  trimmed,  are  decorated  with  feathers  of 
birds  ;  and  sometimes  a  warrior  suspends  at  the 
breast  of  his  horse  the  finest  ornaments  he  possesses. 
Thus  armed  and  mounted,  the  Shoshonee  is  a  for- 
midable enemy,  even  with  the  feeble  weapons  which 
he  is  still  obliged  to  use.  When  they  attack  at  full 
speed,  they  bend  forward,  and  cover  their  bodies  with 
the  shield,  while  with  the  right  hand  they  shoot  under 
the  horse's  neck. 

INDIAN  HORSES  AND   EIDERS. 

They  are  so  well  supplied  with  horses,  that  every 
man,  woman,  and  child  is  mounted  ;  and  all  they  have 
is  packed  upon  horses.  Small  children,  not  more  than 
three  years  old,  are  mounted  alone,  and  generally 
upon  colts.  They  are  tied  upon  the  saddle  to  keep 
them  from  falling,  especially  when  they  go  to  sleep, 
which  they  often  do  when  they  become  fatigued. 
Then  they  lie  down  upon  the  horse's  shoulders  ;  and, 
when  they  awake,  they  lay  hold  of  their  whip,  which 
is  fastened  to  the  wrist  of  their  right  hand,  and  apply 
it  smartly  to  their  horses :  and  it  is  astonishing  to  see 
how  these  little  creatures  will  guide  and  run  them. 
Children  that  are  still  younger  are  put  into  an  in- 
casement  made  with  a  board  at  the  back,  and  a  wick- 


130  OREGON. 

er-work  around  the  other  parts,  covered  with  cloth 
inside  and  without,  or,  more  generally,  with  dressed 
skins ;  and  they  are  carried  upon  the  mother's  back, 
or  suspended  from  a  high  knob  upon  the  fore  part  of 
their  saddles. 


CHAPTER    XI. 

CLARKE'S  RIVER. 

A  UG.  31.-^  Capt.  Lewis,  during  the  absence  of 
his  brother-officer,  had  succeeded  in  procuring 
from  the  Indians,  by  barter,  twenty -nine  horses, — not 
quite  one  for  each  man.  Capt.  Clarke  having  now 
rejoined  us,  and  the  weather  being  fine,  we  loaded 
our  horses,  and  prepared  to  start.  We  took  our  leave 
of  the  Shoshonees,  and  accompanied  by  the  old  guide, 
his  four  sons,  and  another  Indian,  began  the  descent 
of  the  river,  which  Capt.  Clarke  had  named  Lewis's 
River.  After  riding  twelve  miles,  we  encamped  on 
the  bank ;  and,  as  the  hunters  had  brought  in  three 
deer  early  in  the  morning,  we  did  not  feel  in  want  of 
provisions. 

On  the  31st  of  August,  we  made  eighteen  miles. 
Here  we  left  the  track  of  Capt.  Clarke,  and  began  to 
explore  the  new  route  recommended  by  the  Indian 

131 


132  OREGON. 

guide,  and  which  was  our  last  hope  of  getting  out  of 
the  mountains. 

.  During  all  day,  we  rode  over  hills,  from  which  are 
many  drains  and  small  streams,  and,  at  the  distance 
of  eighteen  miles,  came  to  a  large  creek,  called  Fish 
Creek,  emptying  into  the  main  river,  which  is  about 
six  miles  from  us. 

Sept.  2.  —  This  morning,  all  the  Indians  left  us,  ex- 
cept the  old  guide,  who  now  conducted  us  up  Fish 
Creek.  We  arrived  shortly  after  at  the  forks  of  the 
creek.  The  road  we  were  following  now  turned  in  a 
contrary  direction  to  our  course,  and  we  were  left 
without  any  track ;  but,  as  no  time  was  to  be  lost,  we 
began  to  cut  our  road  up  the  west  branch  of  the 
creek.  This  we  effected  with  much  difficulty.  The 
thickets  of  trees  and  brush  through  which  we  were 
obliged  to  cut  our  way  required  great  labor.  Our 
course  was  over  the  steep  and  rocky  sides  of  the 
hills,  where  the  horses  could  not  move  without  dan- 
ger of  slipping  down,  while  their  feet  were  bruised 
by  the  rocks,  and  stumps  of  trees.  Accustomed  as 
these  animals  were  to  this  kind  of  life,  they  suffered 
severely.  Several  of  them  fell  to  some  distance  down 
the  sides  of  the  hills,  some  turned  over  with  the  bag- 
gage, one  was  crippled,  and  two  gave  out  exhausted 


CLARKE'S  RIVER.  133 

with  fatigue.  After  crossing  the  creek  several  times, 
we  had  made  five  miles  with  great  labor,  and  en- 
camped in  ja  small,  stony,  low  ground.  It  was  not, 
however,  till  after  dark  that  the  whole  party  was  col- 
lected ;  and  then,  as  it  rained,  and  we  killed  nothing, 
we  passed  an  uncomfortable  night.  We  had  been  too 
busily  occupied  with  the  horses  to  make  any  hunting 
excursion ;  and,  though  we  saw  many  beaver-dams  in 
the  creek,  we  saw  none  of  the  animals. 

Next  day,  our  experiences  were  much  the  same, 
with  the  addition  of  a  fall-  of  snow  at  evening.  The 
day  following,  we  reached  the  head  of  a  stream  which 
directed  its  course  more  to  the  westward,  and  fol- 
lowed it  till  we  discovered  a  large  encampment  of 
Indians.  When  we  reached  them,  and  alighted  from 
our  horses,  we  were  received  with  great  cordiality. 
A  council  was  immediately  assembled,  white  robes 
.were  thrown  over  our  shoulders,  and  the  pipe  of 
peace  introduced.  After  this  ceremony,  as  it  was  too 
late  to  go  any  farther,  we  encamped,  and  continued 
smoking  and  conversing  with  the  chiefs  till  a  late 
hour. 

Next  morning,  we  assembled  the  chiefs  and  war- 
riors, and  informed  them  who  we  were,  and  the  pur- 
pose for  which  we  visited  their  country.  All  this 


134  OREGON. 

was,  however,  conveyed  to  them  in  so  many  different 
languages,  that  it  was  not  comprehended  without  diffi- 
culty. We  therefore  proceeded  to  the  more  intelli- 
gible language  of  presents,  and  made  four  chiefs  by 
giving  a  medal  and  a  small  quantity  of  tobacco  to 
each.  We  received  in  turn,  from  the  principal  chiefs, 
a  present,  consisting  of  the  skins  of  an  otter  and  two 
antelopes ;  and  were  treated  by  the  women  to  some 
dried  roots  and  berries.  We  then  began  to  traffic  for 
horses,  and  succeeded  in  exchanging  seven,  and  pur- 
chasing eleven. 

These  Indians  are  a  band  of  the  Tushepaws,  a 
numerous  people  of  four  hundred  and  fifty  tents,  re- 
siding on  the  head  waters  of  the  Missouri  and  Colum- 
bia Rivers,  and  some  of  them  lower  down  the  latter 
river.  They  seemed  kind  and  friendly,  and  willingly 
shared  with  us  berries  and  roots,  which  formed  their 
only  stock  of  provisions.  Their  only  wealth  is  their 
horses,  which  are  very  fine,  and  so  numerous  that  this 
band  had  with  them  at  least  five  hundred. 

We  proceeded  next  day,  and,  taking  a  north-west 
direction,  crossed,  within  a  distance  of  a  mile  and  a 
half,  a  small  river  from  the  right.  This  river  is  the 
main  stream ;  and,  when  it  reaches  the  end  of  the  val- 
ley, it  is  joined  by  two  other  streams.  To  the  river 


CLARKE'S  RIVER.  136 

thus  formed  we  gave  the  name  of  Clarke's  River,  he 
being  the  first  white  man  who  ever  visited  its 
waters. 

We  followed  the  course  of  the  river,  which  is  from 
twenty-five  to  thirty  yards  wide,  shallow,  and  stony, 
with  the  low  grounds  on  its  borders  narrow ;  and  en- 
camped on  its  right  bank,  after  making  ten  miles. 
Our  stock  of  flour  was  now  exhausted,  and  we  had 
but  little  corn ;  and,  as  our  hunters  had  killed  nothing 
except  two  pheasants,  our  supper  consisted  chiefly  of 
berries. 

The  next  day,  and  the  next,  we  followed  the  river, 
which  widened  to  fifty  yards,  with  a  valley  four  or  five 
miles  broad.  At  ten  miles  from  our  camp  was  a  creek, 
which  emptied  itself  on  the  west  side  of  the  river. 
It  was  a  fine  bold  creek  of  clear  water,  about  twenty 
yards  wide  ;  and  we  called  it  Traveller's  Rest :  for,  as 
our  guide  told  us  we  should  here  leave  the  river,  we 
determined  to  make  some  stay  for  the  purpose  of  col- 
lecting food,  as  the  country  through  which  we  were 
to  pass  has  no  game  for  a  great  distance. 

Toward  evening,  one  of  the  hunters  returned  with 
three  Indians  whom  he  had  met.  We  found  that 
they  were  Tushepaw  Flatheads  in  pursuit  of  strayed 
horses.  We  gave  them  some  boiled  venison  and  a 


136  OREGON. 

few  presents,  such  as  a  fish  hook,  a  steel  to  strike  fire? 
and  a  little  powder  ;  but  they  seemed  better  pleased 
with  a  piece  of  ribbon  which  we  tied  in  the  hair  of 
each  of  them.  Their  people,  they  said,  were  numer- 
ous, and  resided  on  the  great  river  in  the  plain  below 
the  mountains.  From  that  place,  they  added,  the 
river  was  navigable  to  the  ocean.  The  distance  from 
this  place  is  five  "  sleeps,"  or  days'  journeys. 

On  resuming  our  route,  we  proceeded  up  the  right 
side  of  the  creek  (thus  leaving  Clarke's  River),  over 
a  country,  which,  at  first  plain  and  good,  became  after- 
wards as  difficult  as  any  we  had  yet  traversed. 

We  had  now  reached  the  sources  of  Traveller's-rest 
Creek,  and  followed  the  road,  which  became  less  rug- 
ged. At  our  encampment  this  night,  the  game  hav- 
ing entirely  failed  us,  we  killed  a  colt,  on  which  we 
made  a  hearty  supper.  We  reached  the  river,  which 
is  here  eighty  yards  wide,  with  a  swift  current  and 
a  rocky  channel.  Its  Indian  name  is  Kooskooskee. 

KOOSKOOSKEE    RIVER. 

Sept.  16.  —  This  morning,  snow  fell,  and  continued 
all  day  ;  so  that  by  evening  it  was  six  or  eight  inches 
deep.  It  covered  the  track  so  completely,  that  we 
were  obliged  constantly  to  halt  and  examine,  lest  we 


KOOSKOOSKEE  HIVES.  137 

should  lose  the  route.  The  road  is,  like  that  of  yester- 
day, along  steep  hillsides,  obstructed  with  fallen  tim- 
ber, and  a  growth  of  eight  different  species  of  pine,  so 
thickly  strewed,  that  the  snow  falls  from  them  upon 
us  as  we  pass,  keeping  us  continually  wet  to  the  skin. 
We  encamped  in  a  piece  of  low  ground,  thickly  tim- 
bered, but  scarcely  large  enough  to  permit  us  to  lie 
level.  We  had  made  thirteen  miles.  We  were  wet, 
cold,  and  hungry  •  yet  we  could  not  procure  any  game, 
and  were  obliged  to  kill  another  horse  for  our  sup- 
per. This  want  of  provisions,  the  extreme  fatigue  to 
which  we  were  subjected,  and  the  dreary  prospect 
before  us,  began  to  dispirit  the  men.  They  are  grow- 
ing weak,  and  losing  their  flesh  very  fast. 

After  three  days  more  of  the  same  kind  of  expe- 
rience, on  Friday,  20th  September,  an  agreeable 
change  occurred.  Capt.  Clarke,  who  had  gone  for- 
ward in  hopes  of  finding  game,  came  suddenly  upon 
a  beautiful  open  plain  partially  stocked  with  pine. 
Shortly  after,  he  discovered  three  Indian  boys,  who, 
observing  the  party,  ran  off,  and  hid  themselves  in  the 
grass.  Capt.  Clarke  immediately  alighted,  and,  giv- 
ing his  horse  and  gun  to  one  of  the  men,  went  after 
the  boys.  He  soon  relieved  their  apprehensions,  and 
sent  them  forward  to  the  village,  about  a  mile  off, 


138  OREGON. 

with  presents  of  small  pieces  of  ribbon.     Soon  after 
the  boys  had  reached  home,  a  man  came  out  to  meet 
the  party,  with  great  caution ;  but  he  conducted  them 
to  a  large  tent  in  the  village,  and  all  the  inhabitants 
gathered  round  to  view  with  a  mixture  of  fear  and 
pleasure  the  wonderful  strangers.      The    conductor 
now  informed  Capt.  Clarke,  by  signs,  that  the  spa- 
cious tent  was  the  residence  of  the  great  chief,  who 
had  set  out  three  days  ago,  with  all  the  warriors,  to 
attack  some  of  their  enemies  towards  the  south-west  ; 
that,  in  the  mean  time,  there  were  only  a  few  men  left 
to  guard  the  women  and  children.     They  now  set  be- 
fore them  a  small  piece  of  buffalo-meat,  some  dried 
salmon,  berries,  and  several  kinds  of  roots.     Among 
these  last  was  one  which  is  round,  much  like  an  onion 
in  appearance,  and  sweet  to  the  taste.     It  is  called 
quamash,  and  is  eaten  either  in  its  natural  state,  or 
boiled  into  a  kind  of  soup,  or  made  into  a  cake,  which 
is  called  pasheco.    After  our  long  abstinence,  this  was 
a  sumptuous  repast.     We  returned  the  kindness  of 
the  people  with  a  few  small  presents,  and  then  went 
on,  in  company  with  one  of  the  chiefs,  to  a  second  vil- 
lage in  the  same  plain,  at  a  distance  _of  two  miles. 
Here  the  party  was  treated  with  great  kindness,  and 
passed  the  night. 


KOOSKOOSKEE  RIVER.  139 

The  two  villages  consist  of  about  thirty  double 
tents ;  and  the  people  call  themselves  Chopunnish,  or 
Pierced-nose.  The  chief  drew  a  chart  of  the  river 
on  the  sand,  and  explained  that  a  greater  chief  than 
himself,  who  governed  this  village,  and  was  called 
the  Twisted-hair,  was  now  fishing  at  the  distance  of 
half  a  day's  ride  down  the  river.  His  chart  made  the 
Kooskooskee  to  fork  a  little  below  his  camp,  below 
which  the  river  passed  the  mountains.  Here  was  a 
great  fall  of  water,  near  which  lived  white  people, 
from  whom  they  procured  the  white  beads  and  brass 
ornaments  worn  by  the  women. 

Capt.  Clarke  engaged  an  Indian  to  guide  him  to  the 
Twisted-hair's  camp.  For  twelve  miles,  they  pro- 
ceeded through  the  plain  before  they  reached  the 
river-hills,  which  are  very  high  and  steep.  The 
whole  valley  from  these  hills  to  the  Rocky  Mountains 
is  a  beautiful  level  country,  with  a  rich  soil  covered 
with  grass.  There  is,  however,  but  little  timber,  and 
the  ground  is  badly  watered.  The  plain  is  so  much 
sheltered  by  the  surrounding  hills,  that  the  weather 
is  quite  warm  (Sept.  21),  while  the  cold  of  the  moun- 
tains was  extreme. 

From  the  top  of  the  river-hills  we  descended  for 
three  miles  till  we  reached  the  water-side,  between 


140  OREGON. 

eleven  and  twelve  o'clock  at  night.  Here  we  found 
a  small  camp  of  five  women  and  three  children ;  the 
chief  himself  being  encamped,  with  two  others,  on  a 
small  island  in  the  river.  The  guide  called  to  him, 
and  he  came  over.  Capt.  Clarke  gave  him  a  medal, 
and  they  smoked  together  till  one  o'clock. 

Next  day,  Capt.  Clarke  passed  over  to  the  island 
with  the  Twisted-hair,  who  seemed  to  be  cheerful  and 
sincere.  The  hunters  brought  in  three  deer;  after 
which  Capt.  Clarke  left  his  party,  and,  accompanied 
by  the  Twisted-hair  and  his  son,  rode  back  to  the  vil- 
lage, where  he  found  Capt.  Lewis  and  his  party  just 
arrived. 

The  plains  were  now  crowded  with  Indians,  who 
came  to  see  the  white  men  and  the  strange  things 
they  brought  with  them ;  but,  as  our  guide  was  a  per- 
fect stranger  to  their  language,  we  could  converse  by 
signs  only.  Our  .inquiries  were  chiefly  directed  to 
the  situation  of  the  country.  The  Twisted-hair  drew 
a  chart  of  the  river  on  a  white  elk-skin.  According 
to  this,  the  Kooskooskee  forks  a  few  miles  from 
this  place:  two  days'  journey  towards  the  south  is 
another  and  larger  fork,  on  which  the  Shoshonee 
Indians  fish;  five  days'  journey  farther  is  a  large 
river  from  the  north-west,  into  which  Clarke's  River 


KOOSKOOSREE  RIVER.  141 

empties  itself.  From  the  junction  with  that  river  to 
the  falls  is  five  days'  journey  farther.  On  all  the 
forks,  as  well  as  on  the  main  river,  great  numbers  of 
Indians  reside ;  and  at  the  falls  are  establishments  of 
whites.  This  was  the  story  of  the  Twisted-hair. 

Provision  here  was  abundant.  We  purchased  a 
quantity  of  fish,  berries,  and  roots ;  and  in  the  after- 
noon went  on  to  the  second  village.  We  continued 
our  purchases,  and  obtained  as  much  provision  as  our 
horses  could  carry  in  their  present  weak  condition. 
Great  crowds  of  the  natives  are  round  us  all  night ; 
but  we  have  not  yet  missed  any  thing,  except  a  knife 
and  a  few  other  small  articles. 

Sept.  24.  —  The  weather  is  fair.  All  round  the  vil- 
lage the  women  are  busily  employed  in  gathering  and 
dressing  the  pasheco-root,  large  quantities  of  which 
are  heaped  up  in  piles  all  over  the  plain. 

We  feel  severely  the  consequence  of  eating  heartily 
after  our  late  privations.  Capt.  Lewis  and  two  of  his 
men  were  taken  very  ill  last  evening,  and  to-day  he 
can  hardly  sit  on  his  horse.  Others  could  not  mount 
without  help ;  and  some  were  forced  to  lie  down  by 
the  side  of  the  road  for  some  time. 

Our  situation  rendered  it  necessary  to  husband  our 
remaining  strength ;  and  it  was  determined  to  proceed 


142  OREGON. 

down  the  river  in  canoes.  Capt.  Clarke  therefore  set 
out  with  Twisted-hair  and  two  young  men  in  quest 
of  timber  for  canoes. 

Sept.  27,  28,  and  29.  —  Sickness  continued.  Few 
of  the  men  were  able  to  work ;  yet  preparations  were 
made  for  making  five  canoes.  A  number  of  Indians 
collect  about  us  in  the  course  of  the  day  to  gaze  at 
the  strange  appearance  of  every  thing  belonging  to 
us. 

Oct.  4. —  The  men  were  now  much  better,  and 
Capt.  Lewis  so  far  recovered  as  to  walk  about  a  little. 
The  canoes  being  nearly  finished,  it  became  neces- 
sary to  dispose  of  the  horses.  They  were  therefore 
collected  to  the  number  of  thirty-eight,  and,  being 
branded  and  marked,  were  delivered  to  three  In- 
dians,—  the  two  brothers  and  the  son  of  a  chief; 
the  chief  having  promised  to  accompany  us  down  the 
river.  To  each  of  these  men  we  gave  a  knife  and 
some  small  articles;  and  they  agreed  to  take  good 
care  of  the  horses  till  our  return. 

We  had  all  our  saddles  buried  in  a  cache  near  the 
river,  about  half  a  mile  below,  and  deposited  at 
the  same  time  a  canister  of  powder  and  a  bag  of 
balls. 


VOYAGE  DOWN  THE  KOOSKOOSKEE  RIVER.      143 
THE  VOYAGE  DOWN  THE    KOOSKOOSKEE    RIVER. 

Oct.  7.  —  This  morning,  all  the  canoes  were  put  in 
the  water,  and  loaded,  the  oars  fitted,  and  every  pre- 
paration made  for  setting  out.  When  we  were  all 
ready,  the  chief  who  had  promised  to  accompany  us 
was  not  to  be  found :  we  therefore  proceeded  without 
him.  The  Kooskooskee  is  a  clear,  rapid  stream,  with 
a  number  of  shoals  and  difficult  places.  This  day 
and  the  next,  we  made  a  distance  of  fifty  miles.  We 
passed  several  encampments  of  Indians  on  the  is- 
lands and  near  the  rapids,  which  situations  are  chosen 
as  the  most  convenient  for  taking  salmon.  At  one  of 
these  camps  we  found  the  chief,  who,  after  promising 
to  descend  the  river  with  us,  had  left  us.  He,  how- 
ever, willingly  came  on  board,  after  we  had  gone 
through  the  ceremony  of  smoking. 

Oct.  10.  —  A  fine  morning.  We  loaded  the  canoes, 
and  set  off  at  seven  o'clock.  After  passing  twenty 
miles,  we  landed  below  the  junction  of  a  large  fork 
of  the  river,  from  the  south.  Our  arrival  soon  at- 
tracted the  attention  of  the  Indians,  who  flocked  from 
all  directions  to  see  us.  Being  again  reduced  to  fish 
and  roots,  we  made  an  experiment  to  vary  our  food 
by  purchasing  a  few  dogs ;  and,  after  having  been 


144  OREGON. 

accustomed  to  horse-flesh,  felt  no  disrelish  to  this  new 
dish.  The  Chopunnish  have  great  numbers  of  dogs, 
but  never  use  them  for  food ;  and  our  feeding  on  the 
flesh  of  that  animal  brought  us  into  ridicule  as  dog- 
eaters. 

This  southern  branch  is,  in  fact,  the  main  stream  of 
Lewis's  River,  on  whose  upper  waters  we  encamped 
when  among  the  Shoshonees.  At  its  mouth,  Lewis's 
River  is  about  two  hundred  and  fifty  yards  wide,  and 
1  its  water  is  of  a  greenish-blue  color.  The  Kooskoos- 
kee,  whose  waters  are  clear  as  crystal,  is  one  hundred 
and  fifty  yards  in  width ;  and,  after  the  union,  the 
joint-stream  extends  to  the  width  of  three  hundred 
yards. 

The  Chopunnish,  or  Pierced-nose  Indians,  who  re- 
side on  the  Kooskooskee  and  Lewis's  Rivers,  are  in 
person  stout,  portly,  well-looking  men.  The  women 
are  small,  with  good  features,  and  generally  hand- 
some, though  the  complexion  of  both  sexes  is  darker 
than  that  of  the  Tushepaws.  In  dress,  they  resemble 
that  nation,  being  fond  of  displaying  their  ornaments. 
The  buffalo  or  elk-skin  robe,  decorated  with  beads, 
sea-shells  (chiefly  mother-of-pearl),  attached  to  an 
otter-skin  collar,  is  the  dress  of  the  men.  The  same 
ornaments  are  hung  in  the  hair,  which  falls  in  front 


VOYAGE  DOWN  THE  KOOSKOOSKEE  RIVER.      145 

in  two  cues :  they  add  feathers,  paints  of  different 
colors  (principally  white,  green,  and  blue),  which 
they  find  in  their  own  country.  In  winter,  they 
wear  a  shirt  of  dressed  skins ;  long,  painted  leg- 
gings, and  moccasons ;  and  a  plait  of  twisted  grass 
round  the  neck. 

The  dress  of  the  women  is  more  simple,  consisting 
of  a  long  shirt  of  the  mountain-sheep  skin,  reach- 
ing down  to  the  ankles,  without  a  girdle.  To  this  are 
tied  little  pieces  of  brass  and  shells,  and  other  small 
articles ;  but  the  head  is  not  at  all  ornamented. 

The  Chopunnish  have  few  amusements ;  for  their 
life  is  painful  and  laborious,  and  all  their  exertions 
are  necessary  to  earn  a  precarious  subsistence.  Dur- 
ing the  summer  and  autumn,  they  are  busily  occupied 
in  fishing  for  salmon,  and  collecting  their  winter  store 
of  roots.  In  winter,  they  hunt  the  deer  on  snow- 
shoes  over  the  plains  ;  and,  .towards  spring,  cross  the 
mountains  to  the  Missouri  in  pursuit  of  the  buffalo. 

The  soil  of  these  prairies  is  a  light-yellow  clay. 
It  is  barren,  and  produces  little  more  than  a  bearded 
grass  about  three  inches  high,  and  the  prickly-pear, 
of  which  we  found  three  species.  The  first  is  the 
broad-leaved  kind,  common  to  this  river  with  the  Mis- 
souri ;  the  second  has  a  leaf  of  a  globular  form,  and  is 
10- 


146  OREGON. 

also  frequent  on  the  upper  part  of  the  Missouri ;  the 
third  is  peculiar  to  this  country.  It  consists  of  small, 
thick  leaves  of  a  circular  form,  which  grow  from  the 
margin  of  each  other.  These  leaves  are  armed  with  a 
great  number  of  thorns,  which  are  strong,  and  appear 
to  be  barbed.  As  the  leaf  itself  is  very  slightly  at- 
tached to  the  stem,  as  soon  as  one  thorn  touches  the 
moccason,  it  adheres,  and  brings  with  it  the  leaf,  which 
is  accompanied  with  a  re-enforcement  of  thorns.  This 
species  was  a  greater  annoyance  on  our  march  than 
either  of  the  others. 


CHAPTER    XII. 

FROM  THE  JUNCTION  OF  THE  KOOSKOOSKEE  WITH  LEWISES 
RIVER  TO    THE   COLUMBIA. 

iniROM  the  mouth  of  the  Kooskooskee  to  that  of 
the  Lewis  is  about  a  hundred  miles ;  which  dis- 
tance they  descended  in  seven  days.  The  navigation 
was  greatly  impeded  by  rapids,  which  they  passed 
with  more  or  less  danger  and  difficulty;  being  greatly 
indebted  to  the  assistance  of  the  Indians,  as  they 
thankfully  acknowledge.  Sometimes  they  were  obliged 
to  unload  their  boats,  and  to  carry  them  round  by  land. 
All  these  rapids  are  fishing-places,  greatly  resorted  to 
in  the  season. 

On  the  17th  of  October  (1805),  having  reached  the 
junction  of  Lewis's  River  with  the  Columbia,  they 
found  by  observation  that  they  were  in  latitude  46° 
15',  and  longitude  119°.  They  measured  the  two 
rivers  by  angles,  and  found,  that,  at  the  junction, 
the  Columbia  is  960  yards  wide ;  and  Lewis's  River, 

147 


148  OREGON. 

575  :  but,  below  their  junction,  the  joint  river  is  from 
one  to  three  miles  in  width,  including  the  islands. 
From  the  point  of  junction,  the  country  is  a  continued 
plain,  rising  gradually  from  the  water.  There  is 
through  this  plain  no  tree,  and  scarcely  any  shrub, 
except  a  few  willow-bushes;  and,  even  of  smaller 
plants,  there  is  not  'much  besides  the  prickly-pear, 
which  is  abundant. 

In  the  course  of  the  day,  Capt.  Clarke,  in  a  small 
canoe,  with  two  men,  ascended  the  Columbia.  At  the 
distance  of  five  miles,  he  came  to  a  small  but  not  dan- 
gerous rapid.  On  the  bank  of  the  river  opposite  to 
this  is  a  fishing-place,  consisting  of  three  neat  houses. 
Here  were  great  quantities  of  salmon  drying  on  scaf- 
folds ;  and,  from  the  mouth  of  the  river  upwards,  he 
saw  immense  numbers  of  dead  salmon  strewed  along 
the  shore,  or  floating  on  the  water. 

The  Indians,  who  had  collected  on  the  banks  to 
view  him,  now  joined  him  in  eighteen  canoes,  and 
accompanied  him  up  the  river.  A  mile  above  the 
rapids,  he  observed  three  houses  of  mats,  and  landed 
to  visit  them.  On  entering  one  of  the  houses,  he 
found  it  crowded  with  men,  women,  and  children, 
who  immediately  provided  a  mat  for  him  to  sit  on  ;  and 
one  of  the  party  undertook  to  prepare  something  to 


JUNCTION  OF  THE  RIVERS.  149 

eat.  He  began  by  bringing  in  a  piece  of  pine-wood 
that  had  drifted  down  the  river,  which  he  split  into 
small  pieces  with  a  wedge  made  of  the  elk's  horn, 
by  means  of  a  mallet  of  stone  curiously  carved.  The 
pieces  were  then  laid  on  the  fire,  and  several  round 
stones  placed  upon  them.  One  of  the  squaws  now 
brought  a  bucket  of  water,  in  which  was  a  large, 
salmon  about  half  dried;  and,  as  the  stones  became 
heated,  they  were  put  into  the  bucket  till  the  salmon 
was  sufficiently  boiled.  It  was  then  taken  outj  put 
on  a  platter  of  rushes  neatly  made,  and  laid  before 
Capt.  Clarke.  Another  was  boiled  for  each  of  his 
men.  Capt.  Clarke  found  the  fish  excellent. 

At  another  island,  four  miles  distant,  the  inhabit- 
ants were  occupied  in  splitting  and  drying  salmon. 
The  multitudes  of  this  fish  are  almost  inconceivable. 
The  water  is  so  clear,  that  they  can  readily  be  seen  at 
the  depth  of  fifteen  or  twenty  feet ;  but  at  this  sea- 
son they  float  in  such  quantities  down  the  stream, 
and  are  drifted  ashore,  that  the  Indians  have  nothing 
•to  do  but  collect,  split,  and  dry  them.  The  Indians 
assured  him  by  signs  that  they  often  used  dry  fish  as 
fuel  for  the  common  occasions  of  cooking.  The  even- 
ing coming  on,  he  returned  to  camp. 

Capt.  Clarke,  in  the  course  of  his  excursion,  shot 


150  OREGON. 

several  grouse  and  ducks  ;  also  a  prairie-cock,  —  a 
bird  of  the  pheasant  kind,  about  the  size  of  a  small 
turkey.  It  measured,  from  the  beak  to  the  end  of 
the  toe,  two  feet  six  inches ;  from  the  extremity  of  the 
wings,  three  feet  six  inches ;  and  the  feathers  of  the 
tail  were  thirteen  inches  long.  This  bird  we  have 
§een  nowhere  except  upon  this  river.  Its  chief 
food  is  the  grasshopper,  and  the  seeds  of  wild  plants 
peculiar  to  this  river  and  the  Upper  Missouri. 
• 

ADVENTURE  OF  CAPT.  CLARKE. 

Oct.  19.  —  Having  resumed  their  descent  of  the 
Columbia,  they  came  to  a  very  dangerous  rapid.  In 
order  to  lighten  the  boats,  Capt.  Clarke  landed,  and 
walked  to  the  foot  of  the  rapid.  Arriving  there  be- 
fore  either  of  the  boats,  except  a  canoe,  he  sat  down 
on  a  rock  to  wait  for  them ;  and,  seeing  a  crane  fly 
across  the  river,  shot  it,  and  it  fell  near  him.  Several 
Indians  had  been,  before  this,  passing  on  the  opposite 
side ;  and  some  of  them,  alarmed  at  his  appearance 
or  the  report  of  the  gun,  fled  to  their  houses.  Capt. 
Clarke  was  afraid  that  these  people  might  not  have 
heard  that  white  men  were  coming :  therefore,  in 
order  to  allay  their  uneasiness  before  the  whole 
party  should  arrive,  he  got  into  the  canoe  with  three 


ADVENTURE  OF  CAPT.   CLARKE.  151 

men,  and  rowed  over  towards  the  houses,  and,  while 
crossing,  shot  a  duck,  which  fell  into  the  water.  As 
he  approached,  no  person  was  to  be  seen,  except 
three  men ;  and  they  also  fled  as  he  came  near  the 
shore.  He  landed  before  five  houses  close  to  each 
other ;  but  no  person  appeared :  and  the  doors,  which 
were  of  mat,  were  closed.  He  went  towards  one  of 
them  with  a  pipe  in  his  hand,  and,  pushing  aside  the 
mat,  entered  the  lodge,  where  he  found  thirty-two 
persons,  men  and  women,  with  a  few  children,  alt  in 
the  greatest  consternation  ;  some  hanging  down  their 
heads  j  others  crying,  and  wringing  their  hands.  He 
went  up  to  them  all,  and  shook  hands  with  them 
in  the  most  friendly  manner.  Their  apprehensions 
gradually  subsided,  but  revived  on  his  taking  out  a 
burning-glass  (there  being  no  roof  to  the  lodge),  and 
lighting  his  pipe.  Haviog  at  length  restored  some 
confidence  by  the  gift  of  some  small  presents,  he  vis- 
ited some  other  houses,  where  he  found  the  inhab- 
itants similarly  afiected.  Confidence  was  not  com- 
pletely attained  until  the  boats  arrived,  and  then  the 
two  chiefs  who  accompanied  the  party  explained 
the  friendly  intentions  of  the  expedition.  The  sight 
of  Chaboneau's  wife  also  dissipated  any  remaining 
doubts,  as  it  is  not  the  practice  among  the  Indians  to 
allow  women  to  accompany  a  war-party. 


152  OREGON. 


To  account  for  their  fears,  they  told  the  two  chiefs 
that  they  had  seen  the  white  men  fall  from  the  sky. 
Having  heard  the  report  of  Capt.  Clarke's  rifle,  and 
seen  the  birds  fall,  and  not  having  seen  him  till  after 
the  shot,  they  fancied  that  he  had  himself  dropped 
from  the  clouds. 

This  belief  was  strengthened,  when,  on  entering  the 
lodge,  he  brought  down  fire  from  heaven  by  means  of 
his  burning-glass.  We  soon  convinced  them  that  we 
were  only  mortals ;  and,  after  one  of  our  chiefs  had 
explained  our  history  and  objects,  we  all  smoked 
together  in  great  harmony. 

Oar  encampment  that  night  was  on  the  river-bank 
opposite  an  island,  on  which  were  twenty-four  houses 
of  Indians,  all  of  whom  were  engaged  in  drying  fish. 
We  had  scarcely  landed  when  about  a  hundred  of 
them  came  over  to  visit  us,  bringing  with  them  a 
present  of  some  wood,  which  was  very  acceptable. 
We  received  them  in  as  kind  a  manner  as  we  could, 
smoked  with  them,  and  gave  the  principal  chief  a 
string  of  wampum ;  but  the  highest  satisfaction  they 
enjoyed  was  in  the  music  of  our  two  violins,  with 
which  they  seemed  much  delighted.  They  remained 
all  night  at  our  fires. 


AN  INDIAN  BUR YING-P LACE.  153 

AN   INDIAN   BURYING-PLACE. 

We  walked  to  the  head  of  the  island  for  the  pur- 
pose of  examining  a  vault,  or  bury  ing-place,  which 
we  had  remarked  411  coming  along.  The  place  in 
which  the  dead  are  deposited  is  a  building  about 
sixty  feet  long  and  twelve  feet  wide,  formed  by 
placing  in  the  ground  poles,  or  forks,  six  feet  high, 
across  which  a  long  pole  is  extended  the  whole 
length  of  the  structure.  Against  this  ridge-pole  are 
placed  broad  boards,  and  pieces  of  wood,  in  a  slant- 
ing direction,  sp  as  to  form  a  shed.  The  structure 
stands  east  and  west,  open  at  both  ends.  On  entering 
the  western  end,  we  observed  a  number  of  bodies 
wrapped  carefully  in  leather  robes,  and  arranged  in 
rows  on  boards,  which  were  then  covered  with  a  mat. 
This  part  of  the  building  was  destined  for  those  who 
had  recently  died.  A  little  farther  on,  limbs,  half 
decayed,  were  scattered  about ;  and  in  the  centre  of 
the  building  was  a  large  pile  of  them  heaped  promis- 
cuously. At  the  eastern  extremity  was  a  mat,  on 
which  twenty-one  skulls  were  arranged  in  a  circular 
form :  the  mode  of  interment  being  first  to  wrap  the 
body  in  robes  ;  and,  as  it  decays,  the  bones  are  thrown 
into  the  heap,  and  the  skulls  placed  together  in  order. 


154  OREGON. 

From  the  different  boards  and  pieces  of  wood  which 
form  the  vault  were  suspended  on  the  inside  fishing- 
nets,  baskets,  wooden  bowls,  robes,  skins,  trenchers, 
and  trinkets  of  various  kinds,  intended  as  offerings 
of  affection  to  deceased  relative^  On  the  outside  of 
the  vault  were  the  skeletons  of  several  horses,  and 
great  quantities  of  bones  in  the  neighborhood,  which 
induced  us  to  believe  that  these  animals  were  sacri- 
ficed at  the  funeral-rites  of  their  masters. 

In  other  parts  of  the  route,  the  travellers  found  a 
different  species  of  cemetery.  The  dead  were  placed 
in  canoes,  and  these  canoes  were  raised  above  the 
ground  by  a  scaffolding  of  poles.  The  motive  was 
supposed  to  be  to  protect  them  from  wild  beasts. 

FALLS    OF   THE    COLUMBIA. 

About  a  hundred  and  fifty  miles  below  the  junction 
of  Lewis's  River,  we  reached  the  Great  Falls.  At  the 
commencement  of  the  pitch,  which  includes  the  falls, 
we  landed,  and  walked  down  to  examine  them,  and 
ascertain  on  which  side  we  could  make  a  portage 
most  easily.  From  the  lower  end  of  the  island,  where 
the  rapids  begin,  to  the  perpendicular  fall,  is  about 
two  miles.  Here  the  river  contracts,  when  the  water 
is  low,  to  a  very  narrow  space  ;  and,  with  only  a  short 


FALLS  OF  THE  COLUMBIA.  155 

distance  of  swift  water,  it  makes  its  plunge  twenty 
feet  perpendicularly ;  after  which  it  rushes  on.  among 
volcanic  rocks,  through  a  channel  four  miles  in  length, 
and  then  spreads  out  into  a  gentle,  .broad  current. 

We  will  interrupt  the  narrative  here  to  introduce 
from  later  travellers  some  pictures  of  the  remarkable 
region  to  which  our  explorers  had  now  arrived.  It 
was  not  to  be  expected  that  Capts.  Lewis  and  Clarke 
should  have  taxed  themselves,  in  their  anxious  and 
troubled  march,  to  describe  natural  wonders,  however 
striking. 

Lieut.  Fremont  thus  describes  this  remarkable 
spot : — 

THE  DALLES.  —  "In  a  few  miles  we  descended  to  the  river, 
which  we  reached  at  one  of  its  highly  interesting  features,  known 
as  the  Dalles  of  the  Columbia.  The  whole  volume  of  the  river 
at  this  place  passes  between  the  walls  of  a  chasm,  which  has  the 
appearance  of  having  been  rent  through  the  basaltic  strata  which 
form  the  valley-rock  of  the  region.  At  the  narrowest  place,  we 
found  the  breadth,  by  measurement,  fifty-eight  yards,  and  the 
average  height  of  the  walls-  above  the  water  twenty-five  feet, 
forming  a  trough  between  the  rocks ;  whence  the  name,  proba- 
bly applied  by  a  Canadian  voyageur." 

The  same  scene  is  described  by  Theodore  Winthrop 
in  his  "  Canoe  and  Saddle  :  "  — 

"  The  Dalles  of  the  Columbia,  upon  which  I  was  now  looking, 


156  OREGON. 

must  be  studied  by  the  American  Dante,  whenever  he  comes,  for 
imagery  to  construct  his  Purgatory,  if  not  his  Inferno.  At 
Walla-walla,  two  great  rivers,  Clarke's  and  Lewis's,  drainers  of 
the  continent  north  and  south,  unite  to  form  the  Columbia.  It 
flows  furiously  for  a  hundred  and  twenty  miles  westward. 
When  it  reaches  the  dreary  region  where  the  outlying  ridges 
of  the  Cascade  chain  commence,  it  finds  a  great,  low  surface, 
paved  with  enormous  polished  sheets  of  basaltic  rock.  These 
plates,  in  French,  dalles,  give  the  spot  its  name.  The  great 
river,  a  mile  wide  not  far  above,  finds  but  a  narrow  rift  in  this 
pavement  for  its  passage.  The  rift  gradually  draws  its  sides 
closer,  and,  at  the  spot  now  called  the  Dalles,  subdivides  into 
three  mere  slits  in  the  sharp-edged  rock.  At  the  highest  water, 
there  are  other  minor  channels ;  but  generally  this  continental 
flood  is  cribbed  and  compressed  withfn  its  three  chasms  sud- 
denly opening  in  the  level  floor,  each  chasm  hardly  wider  than 
a  leap  a  hunted  fiend  might  take." 

It  is  not  easy  to  picture  to  one's  self,  from  these 
descriptions,  the  peculiar  scenery  of  the  Dalles.  Fre- 
mont understands  the  name  as  signifying  a  trough  ; 
while  Winthrop  interprets  it  as  plates,  or  slabs,  of 
rock.  The  following  description  by  Lieut,  (now  Gen.) 
Henry  L.  Abbot,  in  his  "  Report  of  Explorations  for 
a  Railroad  Route,"  &c.,  will  show  that  the  term,  in 
each  of  its  meanings,  is  applicable  to  different  parts 
of  the  channel :  — 

"At  the  Dalles  of  the  Columbia,  the  river  rushes  through  a 


FALLS  OF  THE  COLUMBIA.  157 

chasm  only  about  two  hundred  feet  wide,  with  vertical,  basaltic 
sides,  rising  from  twenty  to  thirty  feet  above  the  water.  Steep 
hills  closely  border  the  chasm,  leaving  in  some  places  scarcely 
room  on  the  terrace  to  pass  on  horseback.  The  water  rushes 
through  this  basaltic  trough  with  such  violence,  that  it  is  always 
dangerous,  and  in  some  stages  of  the  water  impossible,  for  a  boat 
to  pass  down.  The  contraction  of  the  river-bed  extends  for 
about  three  miles.  Near  the  lower  end  of  it,  the  channel  di- 
vides into  several  sluices,  and  then  gradually  becomes  broader, 
until,  where  it  makes  a  great  bend  to  the  south,  it  is  over  a 
quarter  of  a  mile  in  width." 


After  this  interruption,  the  journal  is  resumed :  — 

"  We  soon  discovered  that  the  nearest  route  was  on 
the  right  side,  and  therefore  dropped  down  to  the 
head  of  the  rapid,  unloaded  the  canoes,  and  took  all 
the  baggage  over  by  land  to  the  foot  of  the  rapid. 
The  distance  is  twelve  hundred  yards,  part  of  it  over 
loose  sands,  disagreeable  to  pass.  The  labor  of  cross- 
ing was  lightened  by  the  Indians,  who  carried  some 
of  the  heavy  articles  for  us  on  their  horses.  Having 
ascertained  the  best  mode  of  bringing  down  the  ca- 
noes, the  operation  was  conducted  by  Capt.  Clarke, 
by  hauling  the  canoes  over  a  point  of  land  four  hun- 
dred and  fifty-seven  yards  to  the  water.  One  mile 
farther  down,  we  reached  a  pitch  of  the  river,  which, 


158  OREGON. 

being  divided  by  two  large  rocks,  descends  with  great 
rapidity  over  a  fall  eight  feet  in  height.  As  the  boats 
could  not  be  navigated  down  this  steep  descent,  we 
were  obliged  to  land,  and  let  them  down  as  gently  as 
possible  by  strong  ropes  of  elk-skin,  which  we  had 
prepared  for  the  purpose.  They  all  passed  in  safety, 
except  one,  which,  being  loosed  by  the  breaking  of 
the  ropes,  was  driven  down,  but  was  recovered  by  the 
Indians  below." 

Our  travellers  had  now  reached  what  have  since 
been  called  the  Cascade  Mountains ;  and  we  must 
interrupt  their  narrative  to  give  some  notices  of  this 
remarkable  scenery  from  later  explorers.  We  quote 
from  Abbot's  Report :  — 

"  There  is  great  similarity  in  the  general  topographical  fea- 
tures of  the  whole  Pacific  slope.  The  Sierra  Nevada  in  Cali- 
fornia, and  the  Cascade  range  in  Oregon,  form  a  continuous 
wall  of  mountains  nearly  parallel  to  the  coast,  and  from  one 
hundred  to  two  hundred  miles  distant  from  it.  The  main  crest 
of  this  range  is  rarely  elevated  less  than  six  thousand  feet  above 
the  level  of  the  sea,  and  many  of  its  peaks  tower  into  the  region 
of  eternal  snow." 

Lieut.  Abbot  thus  describes  a  view  of  these  peaks 
and  of  the  Columbia  River :  — 

"At  an  elevation  of  five  thousand  feet  above  the  sea,  we 
stood  upon  the  summit  of  the  pass.  For  days  we  had  been 


FALLS  OF  THE  COLUMBIA,  159 

struggling  blindly  through  dense  forests ;  but  now  the  surround- 
ing country  lay  spread  out  before  us  for  more  than  a  hundred 
miles.  The  five  grand  snow-peaks,  Mount  St.  Helens,  Mount 
Ranier,  Mount  Adams,  Mount  Hood,  and  Mount  Jefferson,  rose 
majestically  above  a  rolling  sea  of  dark  fir-covered  ridges,  some 
of  which  the  approaching  winter  had  already  begun  to  mark 
with  white.  On  every  side,  as  far  as  the  eye  could  reach,  ter- 
rific convulsions  of  Nature  had  recorded  their  fury;  and  not 
even  a  thread  of  blue  smoke  from  the  camp-fire  of  a  wandering 
savage  disturbed  the  solitude  of  the  scene." 

THE  COLUMBIA  RIVER.  —  "  The  Columbia  River  forces  its 
way  through  the  Cascade  range  by  a  pass,  which,  for  wild  and 
sublime  natural  scenery,  equals  the  celebrated  passage  of  the 
Hudson  through  the  Highlands.  For  a  distance  of  about  fifty 
miles,  mountains  covered  with  clinging  spruces,  firs,  and  pines, 
where  not  too  precipitous  to  afford  even  these  a  foothold,  rise 
abruptly  from  the  water's  edge  to  heights  varying  from  one 
thousand  to  three  thousand  feet.  Vertical  precipices  of  colum- 
nar basalt  are  occasionally  seen,  rising  from  fifty  to  a  hundred 
feet  above  the  river  level.  In  other  places,  the  long  mountain- 
walls  of  the  river  are  divided  by  lateral  canons  (pronounced 
canyons},  containing  small  tributaries,  and  occasionally  little 
open  spots  of  good  land,  liable  to  be  overflowed  at  high  water." 

CANONS.  —  The  plains  east  of  the  Cascade  Moun- 
tains, through  the  whole  extent  of  Oregon  and  Cali- 
fornia, are  covered  with  a  volcanic  deposit  composed 
of  trap,  basalt,  and  other  rocks  of  the  same  class. 
This  deposit  is  cleft  by  chasms  often  more  than  a 


160  OREGON. 

thousand  feet  deep,  at  the  bottom  of  which  there 
usually  flows  a  stream  of  clear,  cold  water.  This  is 
sometimes  the  only  water  to  be  procured  for  the  dis- 
tance of  many  miles ;  and  the  traveller  may  be  per- 
ishing with  thirst  while  he  sees  far  below  him  a 
sparkling  stream,  from  which  he  is  separated  by  pre- 
cipices of  enormous  height  and  perpendicular  de- 
scent. To  chasms  of  this  nature  the  name  of  canons 
has  been  applied,  borrowed  from  the  Spaniards  of 
Mexico.  We  quote  Lieut.  Abbot's  description  of  the 
canon  of  Des  Chutes  River,  a  tributary  of  the  Co- 
lumbia :  — 

"  Sept.  30.  —  As  it  was  highly  desirable  to  determine  accu- 
rately the  position  and  character  of  the  canon  of  Des  Chutes 
River,  I  started  this  morning  with  one  man  to  follow  down  the 
creek  to  its  mouth,  leaving  the  rest  of  the  party  in  camp.  Hav- 
ing yesterday  experienced  the  inconveniences  of  travelling  in 
the  bottom  of  a  canon,  I  concluded  to  try  to-day  the  northern 
bluff.  It  was  a  dry,  barren  plain,  gravelly,  and  sometimes 
sandy,  with  a  few  bunches  of  grass  scattered  here  and  there. 
Tracks  of  antelopes  or  deer  were  numerous.  After  crossing 
one  small  ravine,  and  riding  about  five  miles  from  camp,  we 
found  ourselves  on  the  edge  of  the  vast  canon  of  the  river, 
which,  far  below  us,  was  rushing  through  a  narrow  trough  of 
basalt,  resembling  the  Dalles  of  the  Columbia.  We  estimated 
the  depth  of  the  canon  at  a  thousand  feet.  On  each  side,  the 
precipices  were  very  steep,  and  marked  in  many  places  by  hori- 


INDIAN  MODE  OF  PACKING  SALMON.  161 

zontal  lines  of  vertical,  basaltic  columns,  fifty  of  sixty  feet  in 
height.  The  man  who  was  with  me  rolled  a  large  rock,  shaped 
like  a  grindstone,  and  weighing  about  two  hundred  pounds, 
from  the  summit.  It  thundered  down  for  at  least  a  quarter  of  a 
mile,  —  now  over  a  vertical  precipice,  now  over  a  steep  mass  of 
detritus,  until  at  length  it  plunged  into  the  river  with  a  hollow 
roar,  which  echoed  and  re-echoed  through  the  gorge  for  miles. 
By  ascending  a  slight  hill,  I  obtained  a  fine  view  of  the  sur- 
rounding country.  The  generally  level  character  of  the  great 
basaltic  table-land  around  us  was  very  manifest  from  this  point. 
Bounded  on  the  west  by  the  Cascade  Mountains,  the  plain 
extends  far  towards  the  south,  —  a  sterile,  treeless  waste." 

THE  CASCADES.  —  "  About  forty  miles  below  the  Dalles,  all 
navigation  is  suspended  by  a  series  of  rapids  called  the  Cas- 
cades. The  wild  grandeur  of  this  place  surpasses  description. 
The  river  rushes  furiously  over  a  narrow  bed  filled  with  bowl- 
ders, and  bordered  by  mountains  which  echo  back  the  roar  of 
the  waters.  The  descent  at  the  principal  rapids  is  thirty-four 
feet ;  and  the  total  fall  at  the  Cascades,  sixty-one  feet.  Salmon 
pass  up  the  river  in  great  numbers ;  and  the  Cascades,  at  cer- 
tain seasons  of  the  year,  are  a  favorite  fishing  resort  with  the 
Indians,  who  build  slight  stagings  over  the  water's  edge,  and 
spear  the  fish,  or  catch  them  in  rude  dip-nets,  as  they  slowly 
force  their  way  up  against  the  current." 

We  now  return  to  our  travellers. 

INDIAN  MODE   OF  PACKING  SALMON. 

X 

Near  our  camp  are  five  large  huts  of  Indians  en- 
gaged in  drying  fish,  and  preparing  it  for  market. 
11 


162  OREGON. 

The  manner  of  doing  this  is  by  first  opening  the  fish, 
and  exposing  it  to  the  sun  on  scaffolds.  When  it  is 
sufficiently  dried,  it  is  pounded  between  two  stones 
till  it  'is  pulverized,  and  is  then  placed  in  a  basket, 
about  two  feet  long  and  one  in  diameter,  neatly  made 
of  grass  and  rushes,  and  lined  with  the  skin  of  the 
salmon,  stretched  and  dried  for  the  purpose.  Here 
they  are  pressed  down  as  hard  as  possible,  and  the 
top  covered  with  skins  of  fish,  which  are  secured  by 
cords  through  the  holes  of  the  basket.  These  baskets 
are  then  placed  in  some  dry  situation,  the  corded  part 
upwards ;  seven  being  usually  placed  as  close  as  they 
can  be  together,  and  five  on  the  top  of  them.  The 
whole  is  then  wrapped  up  in  mats,  and  made  fast  by 
cords.  Twelve  of  these  baskets,  each  of  which  con- 
tains from  ninety  to  a  hundred  pounds,  form  a  stack, 
which  is  now  left  exposed  till  it  is  sent  to  market. 
The  fish  thus  preserved  are  kept  sound  and  sweet  for 
several  years  ;  and  great  quantities  of  it,  they  inform 
us,  are  sent  to  the  Indians  who  live  lower  down  the 
river,  whence  it  finds  its  way  to  the  whites  who  visit 
the  mouth  of  the  Columbia.  We  observe,  both  near 
the  lodges  and  on  the  rocks  in  the  river,  great  num- 
bers of  stacks  of  these  pounded  fish. 

Beside  the  salmon,  there  are  great  quantities  of 


INDIAN  BOATMEN.  163 

salmon-trout,  and  another  smaller  species  of  trout, 
which  they  save  in  another  way.  A  hole  of  any  size 
being  dug,  the  sides  and  bottom  are  lined  with  straw, 
over  which  skins  are  laid.  On  these  the  fish,  after 
being  well  dried,  is  laid,  covered  with  other  skins, 
and  the  hole  closed  with  a  layer  of  earth,  twelve  or 
fifteen  inches  deep.  These  supplies  are  for  their 
winter  food. 

The  stock  of  fish,  dried  and  pounded,  was  so  abun- 
dant, that  Capt.  Clarke  counted  one  hundred  and 
seven  stacks  of  them,  making  more  than  ten  thousand 
pounds. 

THE   INDIAN   BOATMEN. 

The  canoes  used  by  these  people  are  built  of  white 
cedar  or  pine,  very  light,  wide  in  the  middle,  and 
tapering  towards  the  ends ;  the  bow  being  raised, 
and  ornamented  with  carvings  of  the  heads  of  ani- 
mals. As  the  canoe  is  the  vehicle  of  transportation, 
the  Indians  have  acquired  great  dexterity  in  the 
management  of  it,  and  guide  it  safely  over  the 
roughest  waves. 

We  had  an  opportunity  to-day  of  seeing  the  bold- 
ness of  the  Indians.  One  of  our  men  shot  a  goose, 
which  fell  into  the  river,  and  was  floating  rapidly 
towards  the  great  shoot,  when  an  Indian,  observing 


164  OREGON. 

it,  plunged  in  after  it.  The  whole  mass  of  the  waters 
of  the  Columbia,  just  preparing  to  descend  its  narrow 
channel,  carried  the  bird  down  with  great  rapidity. 
The  Indian  followed  it  fearlessly  to  within  a  hundred 
and  fifty  feet  of  the  rocks,  where,  had  he  arrived,  he 
would  inevitably  have  been  dashed  to  pieces ;  but, 
seizing  his  prey,  he  turned  round,  and  swam  ashore 
with  great  composure.  We  very  willingly  relin- 
quished our  right  to  the  bird  in  favor  of  the  Indian, 
who  had  thus  secured  it  at  the  hazard  of  his  life. 
He  immediately  set  to  work,  and  picked  off  about 
half  the  feathers,  and  then,  without  opening  it,  ran  a 
stick  through  it,  and  carried  it  off  to  roast. 

INDIAN   HOUSES. 

While  the  canoes  were  coming  on,  impeded  by  the 
difficulties  of  the  navigation,  Capt.  Clarke,  with  two 
men,  walked  down  the  river-shore,  and  came  to  a 
village  belonging  to  a  tribe  called  Echeloots.  The  vil- 
lage consisted  of  twenty-one  houses,  scattered  pro- 
miscuously over  an  elevated  position.  The  houses 
were  nearly  equal  in  size,  and  of  similar  construction. 
A  large  hole,  twenty  feet  wide  and  thirty  in  length, 
is  dug  to  the  depth  of  six  feet.  The  sides  are  lined 
with  split  pieces  of  timber  in  an  erect  position,  rising 


INDIAN  HOUSES.  165 

a  short  distance  above  the  surface  of  the  ground. 
These  timbers  are  secured  in  their  position  by  a 
pole,  stretched  along  the  side  of  the  building,  near 
the  eaves,  supported  by  a  post  at  each  corner.  The 
timbers  at  the  gable-ends  rise  higher,  the  middle 
pieces  being  the  tallest.  Supported  by  these,  there 
is  a  ridge-pole  running  the  whole  length  of  the  house, 
forming  the  top  of  the  roof.  From  this  ridge-pole  to 
the  eaves  of  the  house  are  placed  ^  number  of  small 
poles,  or  rafters,  secured  at  each  end  by  fibres  of  the 
cedar.  On  these  poles  is  laid  a  covering  of  white 
cedar  or  arbor-vitae,  kept  on  by  strands  of  cedar-fibres. 
A  small  distance  along  the  whole  length  of  the  ridge- 
pole is  left- uncovered  for  the  admission  of  light,  and 
to  permit  the  smoke  to  escape.  The  entrance  is  by  a 
small  door  at  the  gable-end,  thirty  inches  high,  and 
fourteen  broad.  Before  this  hole  is  hung  a  mat ;  and 
on  pushing  it  aside,  and  crawling  through,  the  de- 
scent is  by  a  wooden  ladder,  made  in  the  form  of 
those  used  among  us. 

One-half  of  the  inside  is  used  as  a  place  of  deposit 
for  their  dried  fish,  and  baskets  of  berries :  the  other 
half,  nearest  the  door,  remains  for  the  accommodation 
of  the  family.  On  each  side  are  arranged,  near  the 
walls,  beds  of  mats,  placed  on  platforms  or  bedsteads, 


166  OREGON. 

raised  about  two  feet  from  the  ground.  In  the  mid- 
dle of  the  vacant  space  is  the  fire,  or  sometimes  two 
or  three  fires,  when,  as  is  usually  the  case,  the  house 
contains  several  families. 

The  inhabitants  received  us  with  great  kindness, 
and  invited  us  to  their  houses.  On  entering  one  of 
them,  we  saw  figures  of  men,  birds,  and  different  ani- 
mals, cut  and  painted  on  the  boards  which  form  the 
sides  of  the  room-,  the  figures  uncouth,  and  the  work- 
manship rough;  but  doubtless  they  were  as  much 
esteemed  by  the  Indians  as  our  finest  domestic  adorn- 
ments are  by  us.  The  chief  had  several  articles,  such 
as  scarlet  and  blue  cloth,  a  sword,  a  jacket,  and  hat, 
which  must  have  been  procured  from  the  whites. 
On  one  side  of  the  room  were  two  wide  split  boards, 
placed  together  so  as  to  make  space  for  a  rude  figure 
of  a  man,  cut  and  painted  on  them.  On  pointing  to 
this,  and  asking  what  it  meant,  he  said  something, 
of  which  all  we  understood  was  "  good,"  and  then 
stepped  to  the  image,  and  brought  out  his  bow  and 
quiver,  which,  with  some  other  warlike  implements, 
were  kept  behind  it.  The  chief  then  directed  his 
wife  to  hand  him  his  Medicine-bag,  from  .which  he 
brought  out  fourteen  fore-fingers,  which  he  told  us 
had  once  belonged  to  the  same  number  of  his  ene- 


A  SUBMERGED  FOREST.  167 

mies.  They  were  shown  with  great  exultation ;  and 
after  an  harangue,  which  we  were  left  to  presume 
was  in  praise  of  his  exploits,  the  fingers  were  care- 
fully replaced  among  the  valuable  contents  of  the  red 
Medicine-bag.  This  bag  is  an  object  of  religious  re- 
gard, and  it  is  a  species  of  sacrilege  for  any  one  but 
its  owner  to  touch  it. 

In  all  the  houses  are  images  of  men,  of  different 
shapes,  and  placed  as  ornaments  in  the  parts  of  the 
house  where  they  are  most  likely  to  be  seen. 

A   SUBMERGED   FOREST. 

Oct.  30.  —  The  river  is  now  about  three-quarters  of 
a  mile  wide,  with  a  current  so  gentle,  that  it  does  not 
exceed  a  mile  and  a  half  an  hour ;  but'  its  course  is 
obstructed  by  large  rocks,  which  seem  to  have  fallen 
from  the  mountains.  What  is,  however,  most  singu- 
lar, is,  that  there  are  stumps  of  pine-trees  scattered 
to  some  distance  in  the  river,  which  has  the  appear- 
ance of  having  been  dammed  below,  and  forced  to 
encroach  on  the  shore. 

NOTE. 

Rev.  S.  Parker  says,  "We  noticed  a  remarkable  phenome- 
non,—  trees  standing  in  their  natural  position  in  the  river, 
where  the  water  is  twenty  feet  deep.  In  many  places,  they 


168  OREGON. 


THE   RIVER  WIDENS.  —  THEY  MEET  THE  TIDE. 

Nov.  2,  1805.— Longitude  about  122°.  At  this 
point  the  first  tide-water  commences,  and  the  river 
widens  to  nearly  a  mile  in  extent.  The  low  grounds, 
too,  become  wider ;  and  they,  as  well  as  the  moun- 
tains on  each  side,  are  covered  with  pine,  spruce, 
cotton-wood,  a  species  of  ash,  and  some  alder.  After 
being  so  long  accustomed  to  the  dreary  nakedness  of 
the  country  above,  the  change  is  as  grateful  to  the 
eye  as  it  is  useful  in  supplying  us  with  fuel. 

The  ponds  in  the  low  grounds  on  each  side  of  the 
river  are  resorted  to  by  vast  quantities  of  fowls,  such 
as  swans,  geese,  brants,  cranes,  storks,  white  gulls, 
cormorants,  and  plover.  The  river  is  wide,  and  con- 
were  so  numerous,  that  we  had  to  pick  our  way  with  our  canoe 
as  through  a  forest.  The  water  is  so  clear,  that  I  had  an  oppor- 
tunity of  examining  their  position  down  to  their  spreading  roots, 
and  found  them  in  the  same  condition  as  when  standing  in  their 
native  forest.  It  is  evident  that  there  has  been  an  uncommon 
subsidence  of  a  tract  of  land,  more  than  twenty  miles  in  length, 
and  more  than  a  mile  in  width.  That  the  trees  are  not  wholly 
decayed  down  to  low-water  mark,  proves  that  the  subsidence  is 
comparatively  of  recent  date  ;  and  their  undisturbed  natural 
position  proves  that  it  took  place  in  a  tranquil  manner,  not  by 
any  tremendous  convulsion  of  Nature." 


LARGE   VILLAGE. —  COLUMBIA    VALLEY.          169 

tains  a  great  number  of  sea-otters.  In  the  evening, 
the  hunters  brought  in  game  for  a  sumptuous  supper, 
which  we  shared  with  the  Indians,  great  numbers  of 
whom  spent  the  night  with  us.  During  the  night, 
the  tide  rose  eighteen  inches  near  our  camp. 

A  LARGE  VILLAGE.  —  COLUMBIA  VALLEY. 

Nov.  4.  —  Next  day,  we  landed  on  the  left  bank  of 
the  river,  at  a  village  of  twenty-five  houses.  All  of 
these  were  thatched  with  straw,  and  built  of  bark, 
except  one,  which  was  about  fifty  feet  long,  built  of 
boards,  in  the  form  of  those  higher  up  the  river  ;  from 
which  it  differed,  however,  in  being  completely  above 
ground,  and  covered  with  broad  split  boards.  This 
village  contains  about  two  hundred  men  of  the  Skil 
loot  nation,  who  seem  well  provided  with  canoes,  of 
which  there  were  fifty-two  (some  of  them  very  large) 
drawn  up  in  front  of  the  village. 

On  landing,  we  found  an  Indian  from  up  the  river, 
who  had  been  with  us  some  days  ago,  and  now  in- 
vited us  into  a  house,  of  which  he  appeared  to  own  a 
part.  Here  he  treated  us  with  a  root,  round  in  shape, 
about  the  size  of  a  small  Irish  potato,  which  they  call 
wappatoo.  It  is  the  common  arrowhead,  or  sagittifo- 


170  OREGON. 

lia,  so  much  esteemed  by  the  Chinese,  and,  when 
roasted  in  the  embers  till  it  becomes  soft,  has  an 
agreeable  taste,  and  is  a  very  good  substitute  for 
bread. 

Here  the  ridge  of  low  mountains  running  north- 
west and  south-east  crosses  the  river,  and  forms  the 
western  boundary  of  the  plain  through  which  we 
have  just  passed.*  This  great  plain,"  or  valley,  is 
about  sixty  miles  wide  in  a  straight  line ;  while  on 
the  right  and  left  it  extends  to  a  great  distance.  It 
is  a  fertile  and  delightful  country,  shaded  by  thick 
groves  of  tall  timber,  watered  by  small  ponds,  and 
lying  on  both  sides  of  the  river.  The  soil  is  rich, 
and  capable  of  any  species  of  culture ;  but,  in  the 
present  condition  of  the  Indians,  its  chief  production 
is  the  wappatoo-root,  which  grows  spontaneously  and 
exclusively  in  this  region.  Sheltered  as  it  is  on  both 
sides,  the  temperature  is  -much  milder  than  that  of 
the  surrounding  country.  Through  its  whole  extent, 
it  is  inhabited  by  numerous  tribes  of  Indians,  who 
either  reside  in  it  permanently,  or  visit  its  waters 
in  quest  of  fish  and  wappatoo-roots.  We  gave  it  the 
name  of  the  Columbia  Valley. 

*  Since  called  the  Coast  range. 


COFFIN  ROCK.  —  THEY  REACH  THE  OCEAN.      171 
COFFIN  EOCK. 

Among  some  interesting  islands  of  basalt,  there  is 
one  called  Coffin  Rock,  situated  in  the  middle  of  the 
river,  rising  ten  or  fifteen  feet  above  high-freshet 
water.  It  is  almost  entirely  covered  with  canoes,  in 
which  the  dead  are  deposited,  which  gives  it  its 
name.  In  the  section  of  country  from  Wappatoo 
Island  to  the  Pacific  Ocean,  the  Indians,  instead  of 
committing  their  dead  to  the  earth,  deposit  them  in 
canoes ;  and  these  are  placed  in  such  situations  as  are 
most  secure  from  beasts  of  prey,  upon  such  precipices 
as  this  island,  upon  branches  of  trees,  or  upon  scaf- 
folds made  for  the  purpose.  The  bodies  of  the  dead 
are  covered  with  mats,  and  split  planks  are  placed 
over  them.  The  head  of  the  canoe  is  a  little  raised, 
and  at  the  foot  there  is  a  hole  made  for  water  to 
escape. 

THEY  BEACH  THE  OCEAN. 

Next  day  we  passed  the  mouth  of  a  large  river,  a 
hundred  and  fifty  yards  wide,  called  by  the  Indians 
Cowalitz.  A  beautiful,  extensive  plain  now  presented 
itself;  but,  at  the  distance  of  a  few  miles,  the  hills 
again  closed  in  upon  the  river,  so  that  we  could  not 


172  OREGON. 

for  several  miles  find  a  place  sufficiently  level  to  fix 
our  camp  upon  for  the  night. 

Thursday,  Nov.  7. — The  morning  was  rainy,  and  the 
fog  so  thick,  that  we  could  not  see  across  the  river. 
We  proceeded  down  the  river,  with  an  Indian  for  our 
pilot,  till,  after  making  about  twenty  miles,  the  fog 
cleared  off,  and  we  enjoyed  the  delightful  prospect 
of  the  OCEAN,  the  object  of  all  our  labors,  the  reward 
of  all  our  endurance.  This  cheering  view  exhilarated 
the  spirits  of  all  the  party,  who  listened  with  delight 
to  the  distant  roar  of  the  breakers. 

For  ten  days  after  our  arrival  at  the  coast,  we  were 
harassed  by  almost  incessant  rain.  On  the  12th,  a 
violent  gale  of  wind  arose,  accompanied  with  thunder, 
lightning,  and  hail.  The  waves  were  driven  with 
fury  against  the  rocks  and  trees,  which  had  till  then 
afforded  us  a  partial  defence.  Cold  and  wet ;  our 
clothes  and  bedding  rotten  as  well  as  wet;  the  ca- 
noes, our  only  means  of  escape  from  the  place,  at  the 
mercy  of  the  waves,  —  we  were,  however,  fortunate 
enough  to  enjoy  good  health. 

Saturday,  Nov.  16.  —  The  morning  was  clear  and 
beautiful.  We  put  out  our  baggage  to  dry,  and  sent 
several  of  the  party  to  hunt.  The  camp  was  in  full 
view  of  the  ocean.  The  wind  was  strong  from  the 


AN  EXCURSION  DOWN  THE  BAY.  173 

south-west,  and  the  waves  very  high ;  yet  the  Indians 
were  passing  up  and  down  the  bay  in  canoes,  and 
several  of  them  encamped  near  us.  The  hunters 
brought  in  two  deer,  a  crane,  some  geese  and  ducks, 
and  several  brant.  The  tide  rises  at  this  place  eight 
feet  six  inches,  and  rolls  over  the  beach  in  great 
waves. 

AN  EXCURSION  DOWN  THE  BAY. 

Capt.  Clarke  started  on  Monday,  18th  November,  on 
an  excursion  by  land  down  the  bay,  accompanied  by 
eleven  men.  The  country  is  low,  open,  and  marshy, 
partially  covered  with  high  pine  and  a  thick  under- 
growth. At  the  distance  of  about  fifteen  miles  they 
reached  the  cape,  which  forms  the  northern  boundary 
of  the  river's  mouth,  called  Cape  Disappointment,  so 
named  by  Capt.  Meares,  after  a  fruitless  search  for 
the  river.  It  is  an  elevated  circular  knob,  rising  with 
a  steep  ascent  a  hundred  and  fifty  feet  or  more  above 
the  water,  covered  with  thick  timber  on  the  inner 
side,  but  open  and  grassy  in  the  exposure  next  the 
sea.  The  opposite  point  of  the  bay  is  a  very  low 
ground,  about  ten  miles  distant,  called,  by  Capt.  Gray, 
Point  Adams. 

The  water  for  a  great  distance  off  the  mouth  of  the 


174  OREGON. 

river  appears  very  shallow;  and  within  the  mouth, 
nearest  to  Point  Adams,  there  is  a  large  sand-bar, 
almost  covered  at  high  tide.  We  could  not  ascertain 
the  direction  of  the  deepest  channel ;  for  the  waves 
break  with  tremendous  force  across  the  bay. 

Mr.  Parker  speaks  more  fully  of  this  peculiarity  of 
the  river :  — 

"A  difficulty  of  such  a  nature  as  is  not  easily  overcome 
exists  in  regard  to  the  navigation  of  this  river;  which  is,  the 
sand-bar  at  its  entrance.  It  is  about  five  miles,  across  the  bar, 
from  Cape  Disappointment  out  to  sea.  In  no  part  of  that  dis- 
tance is  the  water  upon  the  bar  over  eight  fathoms  deep,  and  in 
one  place  only  five,  and  the  channel  only  about  half  a  mile  in 
width.  So  wide  and  open  is  the  ocean,  that  there  is  always  a 
heavy  swell :  and,  when  the  wind  is  above  a  gentle  breeze,  there 
are  breakers  quite  across  the  bar ;  so  that  there  is  no  passing  it, 
except  when  the  wind  and  tide  are  both  favorable.  Outside  the 
bar,  there  is  no  anchorage ;  and  there  have  been  instances,  in 
the  winter  season,  of  ships  lying  off  and  on  thirty  days,  waiting 
for  an  opportunity  to  pass  :  and  a  good  pilot  is  always  needed. 
High,  and  in  most  parts  perpendicular,  basaltic  rocks  line  the 
shores." 

The  following  is  Theodore  Winthrop's  description 
of  the  Columbia,  taken  from  his  "  Canoe  and  Sad- 
dle :"- 

"A  wall  of  terrible  breakers  marks  the  mouth  of  the  Colum- 
bia, —  Achilles  of  rivers. 

"  Other  mighty  streams  may  swim  feebly  away  seaward,  may 


^V  EXCURSION  DOWN  THE  BAY.  175 

sink  into  foul  marshes,  may  trickle  through  the  ditches  of  an 
oozy  delta,  may  scatter  among  sand-bars  the  currents  that  once 
moved  majestic  and  united ;  but  to  this  heroic  flood  was  des- 
tined a  short  life  and  a  glorious  one,  —  a  life  all  one  strong, 
victorious  struggle,  from  the  mountains  to  the  sea.  It  has  no 
infancy :  two  great  branches  collect  its  waters  up  and  down 
the  continent.  They  join,  and  the  Columbia  is  born  —  to  full 
manhood.  It  rushes  forward  jubilant  through  its  magnificent 
chasm,  and  leaps  to  its  death  in  the  Pacific." 


CHAPTER   XIII. 

WINTER-QUARTERS. 

,  1805.— Having  now  examined  the 
coast,  it  becomes  necessary  to  decide  on  the 
spot  for  our  winter-quarters.  We  must  rely  chiefly 
for  subsistence  upon  our  arms,  and  be  guided  in  the 
choice  of  our  residence  by  the  supply  of  game  which 
any  particular  spot  may  offer.  The  Indians  say  that 
the  country  on  the  opposite  side  of  the  river  is  better 
supplied  with  elk,  —  an  animal  much  larger,  and  more 
easily  killed,  than  the  deer,  with  flesh  more  nutritive, 
and  a  skin  better  fitted  for  clothing.  •  The  neighbor- 
hood of  the  sea  is,  moreover,  recommended  by  the  fa- 
cility of  supplying  ourselves  with  salt,  and  the  hope 
of  meeting  some  of  the  trading-vessels,  which  are  ex- 
pected about  three  months  hence,  from  which  we 
may  procure  a  fresh  supply  of  trinkets  for  our  jour- 
ney homewards.  These  considerations  induced  us  to 
determine  on  visiting  the  opposite  side  of  the  bay ; 

170 


WINTER-QUARTERS.  Ill 

and,  if  there  was  an  appearance  of  plenty  of  game,  to 
establish  ourselves  there  for  the  winter. 

Monday,  25th  November,  we  set  out ;  but,  as  the 
wind  was  too  high  to  suffer  us  to  cross  the  river,  we 
kept  near  the  shore,  watching  for  a  favorable  change. 
On  leaving  our  camp,  seven  Clatsops  in  a  canoe  ac- 
companied us,  but,  after  going  a  few  miles,  left  us, 
and  steered  straight  across  through  immense,  high 
waves,  leaving  us  in  admiration  at  the  dexterity  with 
which  they  threw  aside  each  wave  as  it  threatened  to 
come  over  their  canoe. 

Next  day,  with  a  more  favorable  wind,  we  began 
to  cross  the  river.  We  passed  between  some  low, 
marshy  islands,  and  reached  the  south  side  of  the  Co- 
lumbia, and  landed  at  a  village  of  nine  large  houses. 
Soon  after  we  landed,  three  Indians  came  down  from 
the  village  with  wappatoo-roots,  which  we  purchased 
with  fish-hooks. 

We  proceeded  along  the  shore  till  we  came  to  a 
remarkable  knob  of  land  projecting  about  a  mile  and 
a  half  into  the  bay,  about  four  miles  round,  while  the 
neck  of  land  which  unites  it  to  the  main  is  not  more 
than  fifty  yards  across.  We  went  round  this  projec- 
tion, which  we  named  Point  William ;  but  the  waves 

then  became  so  high,  that  we  could  not  venture  any 
12 


178  OREGON. 

farther,  and  therefore  landed  on  a  beautiful  shore  of 
pebbles  of  various  colors,  and  encamped  near  an  old 
Indian  hut  on  the  isthmus. 

DISCOMFORTS. 

Nov.  27.  —  It  rained  hard  all  next  day,  and  the 
next,  attended  with  a  high  wind  from  the  south-west. 
It  was  impossible  to  proceed  on  so  rough  a  sea.  We 
therefore  sent  several  men  to  hunt,  and  the  rest  of 
us  remained  during  the  day  in  a  situation  the  most 
cheerless  and  uncomfortable.  On  this  little  neck  of 
land,  we  are  exposed,  with  a  miserable  covering 
which  does  not  deserve  the  name  of  a  shelter,  to  the 
violence  of  the  winds.  All  our  bedding  and  stores 
are  completely  wet,  our  clothes  rotting  with  constant 
exposure,  and  no  food  except  the  dried  fish  brought 
from  the  falls,  to  which  we  are  again  reduced.  The 
hunters  all  returned  hungry,  and  drenched  with  rain ; 
having  seen  neither  deer  nor  elk,  and  the  swans  and 
brants  too  shy  to  be  approached.  At  noon,  the  wind 
shifted  to  the  north-west,  and  blew  with  such  fury, 
that  many  trees  were  blown  down  near  us.  The  gale 
lasted  with  short  intervals  during  the  whole  night ; 
but  towards  morning  the  wind  lulled,  though  the  rain 
continued,  and  the  waves  were  still  high. 


WINTER-  QUAR  TERS.  179 

30th.  —  The  hunters  met  with  no  better  success 
this  day  and  the  next,  and  the  weather  continued 
rainy.  But  on  Monday,  2d  December,  one  of  the 
hunters  killed  an  elk  at  the  distance  of  six  miles 
from  the  camp,  and  a  canoe  was  sent  to  bring  it. 
This  was  the  first  elk  we  had  killed  on  the  west  side 
of  the  Rocky  Mountains  ;  and,  condemned  as  we  have 
been  to  the  dried  fish,  it  forms  a  most  acceptable  food. 

The  rain  continued,  with  brief  interruptions,  during 
the  whole  month  of  December.  There  were  occa- 
sional falls  of  snow,  but  no  frost  or  ice. 

WINTER-QUARTERS. 

Capt.  Lewis  returned  from  an  excursion  down  the 
bay,  having  left  two  of  his  men  to  guard  six  elks  and 
five  deer  which  the  party  had  shot.  He  had  exam- 
ined the  coast,  and  found  a  river  a  short  distance 
below,  on  which  we  might  encamp  for  the  winter, 
with  a  sufficiency  of  elk  for  our  subsistence  within 
reach.  This  information  was  very  satisfactory,  and 
we  decided  on  going  thither  as  soon  as  we  could 
move  from  the  point ;  but  it  rained  all  night  and  the 
following  day. 

Saturday,  7th  December,  1805,  was  fair.  We  there- 
fore loaded  our  canoes,  and  proceeded :  but  the  tide 


180  OREGON. 

was  against  us,  and  the  waves  very  high ;  so  that  we 
were  obliged  to  proceed  slowly  and  cautiously.  We 
at  length  turned  a 'point,  and  found  ourselves  in  a 
deep  bay.  Here  we  landed  for  breakfast,  and  were 
joined  by  a  party  sent  out  three  days  ago  to  look  for 
the  six  elk.  After  breakfast,  we  coasted  round  the 
bay,  which  is  about  four  miles  across,  and  receives 
two  rivers.  We  called  it  Meriwether's  Bay,  from  the 
Christian  name  of  Capt.  Lewis,  who  was,  no  doubt, 
the  first  white  man  who  surveyed  it.  On  reaching 
the  south  side  of  the  bay,  we  ascended  one  of  the 
rivers  for  three  miles  to  the  first  point  of  highland,  on 
its  western  bank,  and  formed  our  camp  in  a  thick 
grove  of  lofty  pines  aboui  two  hundred  yards  from 
the  water,  and  thirty  feet  above  the  level  of  the  high 
tides. 

THE   CLATSOPS   AT   HOME. 

Capt.  Clarke  started  on  an  expedition  to  the  sea- 
shore, to  fix  upon  a  place  for  the  salt-works.  He  took 
six  men  with  him ;  but  three  of  them  left  in  pursuit 
of  a  herd  of  elk.  He  met  three  Indians  loaded  with 
fresh  salmon,  which  they  had  taken,  and  were  return- 
ing to  their  village,  whither  they  invited  him  to  ac- 
company them.  He  agreed;  and  they  brought  out  a 


THE  CLATSOPS  AT  HOME.  181 

canoe  hid  along  the  bank  of  a  creek.  Capt.  Clarke 
and  his  party  got  on  board,  and  in  a  short  time  were 
landed  at  the  village,  consisting  of  twelve  houses, 
inhabited  by  twelve  families  of  Clatsops.  These 
houses  were  on  the  south  exposure  of  a  hill,  and 
sunk  about  four  feet  deep  into  the  ground  j  the  walls, 
roof,  and  gable-ends  being  formed  of  split-pine  boards  ; 
the  descent  through  a  small  door  down  a  ladder. 
There  were  two  fires  in  the  middle  of  the  room,  and 
the  beds  disposed  round  the  walls,  two  or  three  feet 
from  the  floor,  so  as  to  leave  room  under  them  for 
their  bags,  baskets,  and  household  articles.  The  floor 
was  covered  with  mats. 

Capt.  Clarke  was  received  with  much  attention. 
As  soon  as  he  entered,  clean  mats  were  spread,  and 
fish,  berries,  and  roots  set  before  him  on  small,  neat 
platters  of  rushes.  After  he  had  eaten,  the  men  of 
the  other  houses  came  and  smoked  with  him.  They 
appeared  much  neater  in  their  persons  than  Indians 
generally  are. 

Towards  evening,  it  began  to  rain  and  blow  vio- 
lently ;  and  Capt.  Clarke  therefore  determined  to 
remain  during  the  night.  When  they  thought  his 
appetite  had  returned,  an  old  woman  presented  him, 
in  a  bowl  made  of  light-colored  horn,  a  kind  of  sirup, 


182  OREGON. 

pleasant  to  the  taste,  made  from  a  species  of  berry 
common  in  this  country,  about  the  size  of  a  cherry, 
called  by  the  Indians  slielwd.  Of  these  berries  a 
bread  is  also  prepared,  which,  being  boiled  with 
roots,  forms  a  soup,  which  was  served  in  neat 
wooden  trenchers.  This,  with  ^ome  cockles,  was  his 
repast. 

The  men  of  the  village  now  collected,  and  began  to 
gamble.  The  most  common  game  was  one  in  which 
one  of  the  company  was  banker,  and  played  against 
all  the  rest.  He  had  a  piece  of  bone  about  the  size 
of  a  large  bean ;  and,  having  agreed  with  any  one  as 
to  the  value  of  the  stake,  he  would  pass  the  bone 
with  great  dexterity  from  one  hand  to  the  other, 
singing  at  the  same  time  to  divert  the  attention  of 
his  adversary.  Then,  holding  up  his  closed  hands, 
his  antagonist  was  challenged  to  say  in  which  of 
them  the  bone  was,  and  lost  or  won  as  he  pointed  to 
the  right  or  wrong  hand. 

To  this  game  of  hazard  they  abandon  themselves 
with  great  ardor.  Sometimes  every  thing  they  pos- 
sess is  sacrificed  to  it ;  and  this  evening  several  of 
the  Indians  lost  all  the  beads  which  they  had  with 
them. 

This  lasted  for  three  hours ;  when,  Capt.  Clarke  ap- 


THE  CLATSOPS  AT  HOME.  183 

pearing  disposed  to  sleep,  the  man  who  had  been 
most  attentive,  and  whose  name  was  Cuskalah,  spread 
two  new  mats  by  the  fire ;  and,  ordering  his  wife  to 
retire  to  her  own  bed,  the  rest  of  the  company  dis- 
persed at  the  same  time.  Capt.  Clarke  then  lay 
down,  and  slept  as  well  as  the  fleas  would  permit 
him. 

Next  morning  was  cloudy,  with  some  rain.  He 
walked  on  the  sea-shore,  and  observed  the  Indians 
walking  up  and  down,  and  examining  the  shore.  He 
was  at  a  loss  to  understand  their  object  till  one  of 
them  explained  that  they  were  in  search  of  fish, 
which  are  thrown  on  shore  by  the  tide ;  adding,  in 
English,  "  Sturgeon  is  good."  There  is  every  reason 
to  suppose  that  these  Clatsops  depend  for  their  sub- 
sistence during  the  winter  chiefly  on  the  fish  thus 
casually  thrown  on  the  coast. 

After  amusing  himself  for  some  time  on  the  beach, 
Capt.  Clarke  returned  toward  the  village.  One  of 
the  Indians  asked  him  to  shoot  a  duck  which  he 
pointed  out.  He  did  so ;  and,  having  accidentally 
shot  off  its  head,  the  bird  was  brought  to  the  vil- 
lage, and  all  the  Indians  came  round  in  astonishment. 
They  examined  the  duck,  the  musket,  and  the  very 
small  bullet  (a  hundred  to  the  pound);  and  then  ex- 


184  OREGON. 

claimed  in  their  language,  "  Good  musket :  don't 
understand  this  kind  of  musket." 

They  now  placed  before  him  their  best  roots,  fish, 
and  sirup ;  after  which  he  bought  some  berry-bread 
and  a  few  roots  in  exchange  for  fish-hooks,  and  then 
set  out  to  return  by  the  same  route  by  which  he 
came.  He  was  accompanied  by  Cuskalah  and  his 
brother  part  of  the  way,  and  proceeded  to  the  camp 
through  a  heavy  rain.  The  party  had  been  occupied 
during  his  absence  in  cutting  down  trees  and  in 
hunting. 

Next  day,  two  of  our  hunters  returned  with  the 
pleasing  intelligence  of  their  having  killed  eighteen 
elk  about  six  miles  off.  Our  huts  begin  to  rise  ;  for, 
though  it  rains  all  day,  we  continue  our  labors, 
and  are  glad  to  find  that  the  beautiful  balsam-pine 
splits  into  excellent  boards  more  than  two  feet  in 
width. 

Dec.  15.  —  Capt.  Clarke,  with  sixteen  men,  set  out 
in  three  -canoes  to  get  the  elk  which  were  killed. 
After  landing  as  near  the  spot  as  possible,  the  men 
were  despatched  in  small  parties  to  bring  in  the 
game  ;  each  man  returning  with  a  quarter  of  an 
animal.  It  was  accomplished  with  much  labor  and 
suffering;  for  the  rain  fell  incessantly. 


THE  FORT  COMPLETED.  185 

THE  FORT   COMPLETED. 

We  now  had  the  meat-house  covered,  and  all  our 
game  carefully  hung  up  in  small  pieces.  Two  days 
after,  we  covered  in  four  huts.  Five  men  were  sent 
out  to  hunt,  and  five  others  despatched  to  the  sea- 
side, each  with  a  large  kettle,  in  order  to  begin  the 
manufacture  of  salt.  The  rest  of  the  men  were  em- 
ployed in  making  pickets  and  gates  for  our  fort. 

Dec.  31. — As  if  it  were  impossible  to  have  twenty- 
four  hours  of  pleasant  weather,  the  sky  last  even- 
ing clouded  up,  and  the  rain  began,  and  continued 
through  the  day.  In  the  morning,  there  came  down 
two  canoes,  —  one  from  the  Wahkiacum  village  ;  the 
other  contained  three  men  and  a  squaw  of  the  Skil- 
loot  nation.  They  brought  wappatoo  and  shanatac 
roots/  dried  fish,  mats  made  of  flags  and  rushes, 
dressed  elk-skins,  and  tobacco,  for  which,  particularly 
the  skins,  they  asked  an  extravagant  price.  We 
purchased  some  wappatoo  and  a  little  tobacco,  very 
much  like  that  we  had  seen  among  the  Shoshonees, 
put  up  in  small,  neat  bags  made  of  rushes.  These 
we  obtained  in  exchange  for  a  few  articles,  among 
which  fish-hooks  are  the  most  esteemed.  One  of  the 
Skilloots  brought  a  gun  which  wanted  some  repair ; 


186  OREGON. 

and,  when  we  had  put  it  in  order,  we  received  from 
him  a  present  of  about  a  peck  of  wappatoo.  We  then 
gave  him  a  piece  of  sheep-skin  and  blue  cloth  to 
cover  the  lock,  and  he  very  thankfully  offered  a  fur- 
ther present  of  roots.  There  is  an  obvious  superi- 
ority of  these  Skilloots  over  the  Wahkiacums,  who 
are  intrusive,  thievish,  and  impertinent.  Our  new 
regulations,  however,  and  the  appearance  of  the  sen- 
tinel, have  improved  the  behavior  of  all  our  Indian 
visitors.  They  left  the  fort  before  sunset,  even  with- 
out being  ordered. 


CHAPTER    XIY. 

• 

A   NEW  YEAR. 

TTTE  were  awaked  at  an  early  hour  by  the  dis- 
charge of  a  volley  of  small-arms  to  salute  the 
new  year.  This  is  the  only  way  of  doing  honor  to 
the  day  which  our  situation  admits;  for  our  only 
dainties  are  boiled  elk  and  wappatoo,  enlivened  by 
draughts  of  water. 

Next  day,  we  were  visited  by  the  chief,  Comowool, 
and  six  Clatsops.  Besides  roots  and  berries,  they 
brought  for  sale  three  dogs.  Having  been  so  long 
accustomed  to  live  on  the  flesh  of  dogs,  the  most  of 
us  have  acquired  a  fondness  for  it ;  and  any  objection 
to  it  is  overcome  by  reflecting,  that,  while  we  sub- 
sisted on  that  food,  we  were  fatter,  stronger,  and  in 
better  health,  than  at  any  period  since  leaving  the 
buffalo  country,  east  of  the  mountains. 

The  Indians  also  brought  with  them  some  whale's 
blubber,  which  they  obtained,  they  told  us,  from  their 

*  187 


188  OREGON. 

neighbors  who  live  on  the  sea-coast,  near  one  of 
whose  villages  a  whale  has  recently  been  thrown  and 
stranded.  It  was  white,  and  not  unlike  the  fat  of 
pork,  though  of  a  more  porous  and  spongy  texture ; 
and,  on  being  cooked,  was  found  to  be  tender  and 
palatable,  in  flavor  resembling  the  flesh  of  the  beaver. 
Two  of  the  five  men  who  were  despatched  to  make 
salt  returned.  They  had  formed  an  establishment 
about  fifteen  miles  south-west  of  our  fort,  near  some 
scattered  houses  of  the  Clatsops,  where  they  erected 
a  comfortable  camp,  and  had  killed  a  stock  of  provis- 
ions. They  brought  with  them  a  gallon  of  the  salt 
of  their  manufacture,  which  was  white,  fine,  and  very 
good.  It  proves  to  be  a  most  agreeable  addition  to 
our  food  ;  and,  as  they  can  make  three  or  four  quarts 
a  day,  we  have  a  prospect  of  a  plentiful  supply. 

THE    WHALE. 

The  appearance  of  the  whale  seemed  to  be  a  matter 
of  importance  to  all  the  neighboring  Indians ;  and  in 
hopes  that  we  might  be  able  to  procure  some  of  it  for 
ourselves,  or  at  least  purchase  some  from  the  Indians, 
a  small  parcel  of  merchandise  was  prepared,  and  a 
party  of  men  got  in  readiness  to  set  out  in  the  morn- 
ing. As  soon  as  this  resolution  was  known,  Chabo- 


THE   WHALE.  189 

neau  and  his  wife  requested  that  they  might  be  per- 
mitted to  accompany  us.  The  poor  woman  urged 
very  earnestly  that  she  had  travelled  a  great  way 
with  us  to  see  the  great  water,  yet  she  had  never 
been  down  to  the  coast ;  and,  now  that  this  monstrous 
fish  also  was  to  be  seen,  it  seemed -hard  that  she 
should  not  be  permitted  to  see  either  the  ocean  or 
the  whale.  So  reasonable  a  request  could  not  be 
denied :  they  were  therefore  suffered  to  accompany 
Capt.  Clarke,  who  next  day,  after  an  early  breakfast, 
set  out  with  twelve  men  in  two  canoes. 

He  proceeded  down  the  river  on  which  we  are  en- 
camped into  Meriwether  Bay  ;  from  whence  he  passed 
up  a  creek  three  miles  to  some  high,  open  land,  where 
he  found  a  road.  He  there  left  the  canoes,  and  fol- 
lowed the  path  over  deep  marshes  to  a  pond  about  a 
mile  long.  Here  they  saw  a  herd  of  elk;  and  the  men 
were  divided  into  small  parties,  and  hunted  them  till 
after  dark.  Three  of  the  elk  were  wounded ;  but 
night  prevented  our  taking  more  than  one,  which 
was  brought  to  the  camp,  and  cooked  with  some 
sticks  of  pine  which  had  drifted  down  the  creeks. 
The  weather  was  beautiful,  the  sky  clear,  and  the 
moon  shone  brightly,  —  a  circumstance  the  more 
agreeable,  as  this  is  the  first  fair  evening  we  have 
enjoyed  for  two  months. 


190  OREGON. 

Thursday,  Jan.  2.  —  There  was  a  frost  this  morn- 
ing. We  rose  early,  and  taking  eight  pounds  of 
flesh,  which  was  all  that  remained  of  the  elk,  pro- 
ceeded up  the  south  fork  of  the  creek.  At  the  dis- 
tance of  two  miles  we  found  a  pine-tree,  which  had 
been  felled  by  one  of  our  salt-makers,  on  which  we 
crossed  the  deepest  part  of  the  creek,  and  waded 
through  the  rest.  We  then  went  over  an  open,  ridgy 
prairie,  three-quarters  of  a  mile  to  the  sea-beach ;  after 
following  which  for  three  miles,  we  came  to  the  mouth 
of  a  beautiful  river,  with  a  bold,  rapid  current,  eighty- 
five  yards  wide,  and  three  feet  deep  in  its  shallowest 
crossings.  On  its  north-east  side  are  the  remains  of 
an  old  village  of  Clatsops,  inhabited  by  only  a  single 
family,  who  appeared  miserably  poor  and  dirty.  We 
gave  the  man  two  fish-hooks  to  ferry  the  party  over 
the  river,  which,  from  the  tribe  on  its  banks,  we  called 
Clatsop  River.  •  The  creek  which  we  had  passed  on  a 
tree  approaches  this  river  within  about  a  hundred 
yards,  and,  by  means  of  a  portage,  supplies  a  commu- 
nication with  the  villages  near  Point  Adams. 

After  going  on  for  two  miles,  we  found  the  salt- 
makers  encamped  near  four  houses  of  Clatsops  and 
Killimucks,  who,  though  poor  and  dirty,  seemed  kind 
and  well-disposed.  We  persuaded  a  young  Indian,  by 


CLARKE'S  POINT  OF  VIEW.  191 

the  present  of  a  file  and  a  promise  of  some  other  arti- 
cles, to  guide  us  to  the  spot  where  the  whale  lay.  He 
led  us  for  two  and  a  half  miles  over  the  round,  slip- 
pery stones  at  the  foot  of  a  high  hill  projecting  into 
the  sea,  and  then,  suddenly  stopping,  and  uttering  the 
word  "  peshack,"  or  bad,  explained  by  signs  that  we 
could  no  longer  follow  the  coast,  but  must  cross  the 
mountain.  This  threatened  to  be  a  most  laborious 
undertaking ;  for  the  side  was  nearly  perpendicular, 
and  the  top  lost  in  clouds.  He,  however,  followed  an 
Indian  path,  which  wound  along,  and  favored  the  as- 
cent as  much  as  possible ;  but  it  was  so  steep,  that,  at 
one  place,  we  were  forced  to  draw  ourselves  up  for 
about  a  hundred  feet  by  means  of  bushes  and  roots. 

CLARKE'S  POINT  OF  VIEW. 

At  length,  after  two  hours'  labor,  we  reached  the 
top  of  the  mountain,  where  we  looked  down  with 
astonishment  on  the  height  of  ten  or  twelve  hundred 
feet  which  we  had  ascended.  We  were  here  met 
by  fourteen  Indians  loaded  with  oil  and  blubber,  the 
spoils  of  the  whale,  which  they  were  carrying  in 
very  heavy  burdens  over  this  rough  mountain.  On 
leaving  them,  we  proceeded  over  a  bad  road  till 
night,  when  we  encamped  on  a  small  run.  We  were 


192  OREGON. 

all  much  fatigued  :  but  the  weather  was  pleasant;  and, 
for  the  first  time  since  our  arrival  here,  an  entire  day 
has  passed  without  rain. 

In  the  morning  we  set  out  early,  and  proceeded 
to  the  top  of  the  mountain,  the  highest   point   of 
which  is  an  open  spot  facing  the  ocean.   It  is  situated 
about  thirty  miles  south-east  of  Cape  Disappointment, 
and  projects  nearly  two  and  a  half  miles  into  the 
sea.     Here  one  of  the  most  delightful  views  imagina- 
ble presents  itself.    Immediately  in  front  is  the  ocean, 
which  breaks  with  fury  on  the  coast,  from  the  rocks 
of  Cape  Disappointment  as  far  as  the  ey£  can  discern 
to  the  north-west,  and  against  the  highlands  and  ir- 
regular piles  of  rock  which  diversify  the  shore  to  the 
south-east.     To  this  boisterous  scene,  the  Columbia, 
with  its  tributary  waters,  widening  into  bays  as  it 
approaches  the  ocean,  and  studded  on  both  sides  with 
the  Chinnook  and  Clatsop  villages,  forms  a  charming 
contrast ;    while   immediately   beneath   our  feet  are 
stretched  rich  prairies,  enlivened  by  three  beautiful 
streams,  which  conduct  the  eye  to  small  lakes  at  the 
foot  of  the  hills.     We  stopped  to  enjoy  the  romantic 
view  from  this  place,  which  we  distinguished  by  the 
name  of  Clarke's  Point  of  View,  and  then  followed 
our  guide  down  the  mountain. 


THE   WHALE.  193 

THE  WHALE. 

The  descent  was  steep  and  dangerous.  In  many 
places,  the  hillsides,  which  are  formed  principally  of 
yellow  clay,  have  been  loosened  by  the  late  rains,  and 
are  slipping  into  the  sea  in  large  masses  of  fifty  and 
a  hundred  acres.  In  other  p^rts,  the  path  crosses 
the  rugged,  perpendicular,  basaltic  rocks  which  over- 
hang the  sea,  into  which  a  false  step  would  have  pre- 
cipitated us. 

The  mountains  are  covered  with  a  very  thick 
growth  of -timber,  chiefly  pine  and  fir;  some  trees 
of  which,  perfectly  sound  and  solid,  rise  to  the  height 
of  two  hundred  and  ten  feet,  and  are  from  eight  to 
twelve  in  diameter.  Intermixed  is  the  white  cedar, 
or  arbor-vitae,  and  some  trees  of  black  alder,  two  or 
three  feet  thick,  and  sixty  or  seventy  in  height.  At 
length  we  reached  the  sea-level,  and  continued  for 
two  miles  along  the  sand-beach,  and  soon  after 
reached  the  place  where  the  waves  had  thrown  the 
whale  on  shore.  The  animal  had  been  placed  be- 
tween two  villages  of  Killimucks ;  and  such  had  been 
their  industry,  that  there  now  remained  nothing  but 
the  skeleton,  which  we  found  to  be  a  hundred  and 

13 


194  OREGON. 

five  feet  in  length.  Capt.  Clarke  named  the  place 
Ecola,  or  Whale  Creek. 

The  natives  were  busied  in  boiling  the  blubber  in 
a  large  square  trough  of  wood  by  means  of  heated 
stones,  preserving  the  oil  thus  extracted  in  bladders 
and  the  entrails  of  the  whale.  The  refuse  pieces  of 
the  blubber,  which  stijl  contained  a  portion  of  oil,  were 
hung  up  in  large  flitches,  and,  when  wanted  for  use, 
were  warmed  on  a  wooden  spit  before  the  fire,  and 
eaten,  either  alone,  or  with  roots  of  the  rush  and 
shanatac.  The  Indians,  though  they  had  great  quan- 
tities, parted  with  it  very  reluctantly,  at  such  high 
prices,  that  our  whole  stock  of  merchandise  was  ex- 
hausted in  the  purchase  of  about  three  hundred 
pounds  of  blubber  and  a  few  gallons  of  oil. 

Next  morning  was  fine,  the  wind  from  the  north- 
east ;  and,  having  divided  our  stock  of  the  blubber, 
we  began  at  sunrise  to  retrace  our  steps  in  order  to 
reach  our  encampment,  which  we  called  Fort  Clatsop, 
thirty-five  miles  distant,  with  as  little  delay  as  possi- 
ble. We  met  several  parties  of  Indians  on  their  way 
to  trade  for  blubber  and  oil  with  the  Killimucks  :  we 
also  overtook  a  party  returning  from  the  village,  and 
could  not  but  regard  with  astonishment  the  heavy 
loads  which  the  women  carry  over  these  fatiguing 


DREWYER,  THE  HUNTER.  195 

and  dangerous  paths.  As  one  of  the  women  was 
descending  a  steep  part  of  the  mountain,  her  load 
slipped  from  her  back;  and  she  stood  holding  it  by  a 
strap  with  one  hand,  and  with  the  other  supporting 
herself  by  a  bush.  Capt.  Clarke,  being  near  her,  un- 
dertook to  replace  the  load,  and  found  it  almost,  as 
much  as  he 'could  lift,  and  above  one  hundred  pounds 
in  weight.  Loaded  as  they  were,  they  kept  pace  with 
us  till  we  reached  the  salt-makers'  camp,  where  we 
passed  the  night,  while  they  continued  their  route. 

Next  day,  we  proceeded  across  Clatsop  River  to 
the  place  where  we  had  left  our  canoes,  and,  as  the 
tide  was  coming  in,  immediately  embarked  for  the 
fort,  at  which  place  we  arrived  about  ten  o'clock  at 
night. 


Jan.  12, 1806.  —  Two  hunters  had  been  despatched 
in  the  morning;  and  one  of  them,  Drewyer,  had,  before 
evening,  killed  seven  elks.  We  should  scarcely  be 
able  to  subsist,  were  it  not  for  the  exertions  of  this 
excellent  hunter.  The  game  is  scarce ;  and  none  is 
now  to  be  seen  except  elk,  which,  to  almost  all  the 
men,  are  very  difficult  to  be  procured.  But  Drewyer, 
who  is  the  offspring  of  a  Canadian  Frenchman  and  an 


196  OREGON. 

Indian  woman,  has  passed  his  life  in  the  woods,  and 
unites  in  a  wonderful  degree  the  dexterous  aim  of  the 
frontier  huntsman  with  the  sagacity  of  the  Indian  in 
pursuing  the  faintest  tracks  through  the  forest.  All 
our  men  have  indeed  become  so  expert  with  the  rifle, 
that,  when  there  is  game  of  any  kind,  we  are  almost 
certain  of  procuring  it. 

Monday,  Jan.  13.  —  Capt.  Lewis  took  all  the  men  who 
could  be  spared,  and  brought  in  the  seven  elk,  which 
they  found  untouched  by  the  wolves.  The  last  of  the 
candles  which  we  brought  with  us  being  exhausted, 
we  now  began  to  make  others  of  elk-tallow.  We  also 
employed  ourselves  in  jerking  the  meat  of  the  elk. 
We  have  three  of  the  canoes  drawn  up  out  of  the 
reach  of  the  water,  and  the  other  secured  by  a  strong 
cord,  so  as  to  be  ready  for  use  if  wanted. 

Jan.  16.  —  To-day  we  finished  curing  our  meat; 
and  having  now  a  plentiful  supply  of  elk  and  salt,  and 
our  houses  dry  and  comfortable,  we  wait  patiently  for 
the  moment  of  resuming  our  journey. 


CHAPTER    XV. 

WINTER    LIFE. 

TAN.  18, 1806.  —  We  are  all  occupied  in  dressing 
skins,  and  preparing  clothes  for  our  journey 
homewards.  This  morning,  we  sent  out  two  parties 
of  hunters  in  different  directions.  We  were  visited 
by  three  Clatsops,  who  came  merely  for  the  purpose 
of  smoking  and  conversing  with  us. 

Jan.  21.  —  Two  of  the  hunters  came  back  with 
three  elks,  which  form  a  timely  addition  to  our  stock 
of  provision.  The  Indian  visitors  left  us  at  twelve 
o'clock. 

The  Clatsops  and  other  nations  have  visited  us 
with  great  freedom.  Having  acquired  much  of  their 
language,  we  are  enabled,  with  the  assistance  of  ges- 
tures, to  hold  conversations  with  great  ease.  We 
find  them  inquisitive  and  loquacious ;  by  no  means 
deficient  in  acuteness.  They  are  generally  cheerful, 

197 


198  OREGON. 

but  seldom  gay.     Every  thing  they  see  excites  their 
attention  and  inquiries. 

Their  treatment  of  women  and  old  men  depends 
very  much  on  the  usefulness  of  these  classes.  Thus, 
among  the  Clatsops  and  Chinnooks,  who  live  upon 
fish  and  roots,  which  the  women  are  equally  expert 
with  the  men  in  procuring,  the  women  have  a  rank 
and  influence  far  greater  than  they  have  among  the 
hunting  tribes.  On  many  subjects  their  judgments 
and  opinions  are  respected ;  and,  in  matters  of  trade, 
their  advice  is  generally  asked  and  followed.  So 
with  the  old  men :  when  one  is  unable  to  pursue  the 
chase,  his  counsels  may  compensate  for  his  want  of 
activity  ;  but  in  the  next  state  of  infirmity,  when  he 
can  no  longer  travel  from  camp  to  camp  as  the  tribe 
roams  about  for  subsistence,  he  is  found  to  be  a  bur- 
den. In  this  condition  they  are  abandoned  among 
the  Sioux  and  other  hunting-tribes  of  the  Missouri. 
As  the  tribe  are  setting  out  for  some  new  excursion 
where  the  old  man  is  unable  to  follow,  his  children  or 
nearest  relations  place  before  him  a  piece  of  meat 
and  some  water ;  and  telling  him  that  he  has  lived 
long  enough,  that  it  is  now  time  for  him  to  go  home 
to  his  relations,  who  can  take  better  care  of  him  than 


FLA  THE  AD  INDIANS.  199 

his  friends  on  earth,  they  leave  him  without  remorse 
to  perish,  when  his  little  supply  is  exhausted. 

Though  this  is  doubtless  true  as  a  general  rule, 
yet,  in  the  villages  o£  the  Minnetarees  and  Ricaras, 
we  saw  no  want  of  kindness  to  old  men  :  on  the  con- 
trary, probably  because  in  villages  the  more  abundant 
means  of  subsistence  renders  such  cruelty  unneces- 
sary, the  old  people  appeared  to  be  treated  with  at- 
tention ;  and  some  of  their  feasts,  particularly  the 
buffalo-dances,  were  intended  chiefly  as  an  occasion 
of  contribution  for  the  old  and  infirm. 

PLATHEAD     INDIANS. 

The  custom  of  flattening  the  head  by  artificial 
pressure  during  infancy  prevails  among  all  the  na- 
tions we  have  seen  west  of  the  Rocky  Mountains. 
To  the  east  of  that  barrier  the  fashion  is  so  perfectly 
unused,  that  they  designate  the  western  Indians,  of 
whatever  tribe,  by  the  common  name  of  Flatheads. 
The  practice  is  universal  among  the  Killamucks,  Clat- 
sops,  Chinnooks,  and  Cathlamahs,  —  the  four  nations 
with  whom  we  have  had  most  intercourse.  Soon 
after  the  birth  of  her  child,  the  mother  places  it  in 
the  compressing-frame,  where  it  is  kept  for  ten  or 
twelve  months.  The  operation  is  so  gradual,  that  it 


200  OREGON. 

is  not  attended  with  pain.  The  heads  of  the  children, 
when  they  are  released  from  the  bandage,  are  not 
more  than  two  inches  thick  about  the  upper  edge 
of  the  forehead:  nor,  with  ajl  its  efforts,  can  na- 
ture ever  restore  their  shape;  the  heads  of  grown 
persons  being  often  in  a  straight  line  from  the  tip  of 
the  nose  to  the  top  of  the  forehead. 

TEMPERANCE.  —  GAMBLING. 

Their  houses  usually  contain  several  families,  con- 
sisting of  parents,  sons  and  daughters,  daughters-in- 
law  and  grand-children,  among  whom  the  provisions 
are  in  common,  and  harmony  seldom  interrupted. 
As  these  families  gradually  expand  into  tribes, 
or  nations,  the  paternal  authority  is  represented  by 
the  chief  of  each  association.  The  chieftainship  is 
not  hereditary  :  the  chief's  ability  to  render  service 
to  his  neighbors,  and  the  popularity  which  follows  it, 
is  the  foundation  of  his  authority,  which  does  not 
extend  beyond  the  measure  of  his  personal  in- 
fluence. 

The  harmony  of  their  private  life  is  protected  by 
their  ignorance  of  spirituous  liquors.  Although  the 
tribes  near  the  coast  have  had  so  much  intercourse 
with  the  whites,  they  do  not  appear  to  possess 


TEMPERANCE.  —  GAMBLING.  201 

knowledge  of  those  dangerous  luxuries ;  at  least, 
they  have  never  inquired  of  us  for  them.  Indeed, 
we  have  not  observed  any  liquor  of  an  intoxicating 
quality  used  among  any  Indians  west  of  the  Rocky 
Mountains ;  the  universal  beverage  being  pure  water. 
They,  however,  almost  intoxicate  themselves  by  smok- 
ing tobacco,  of  which  they  are  excessively  fond.  But 
the  common  vice  of  all  these  people  is  an  attachment 
to  games  of  chance,  which  they  pursue  with  a  ruin- 
ous avidity.  The  game  of  the  pebble  has  already 
been  described.  Another  game  is  something  like  the 
play  of  ninepins.  Two  pins  are  placed  on  the  floor, 
about  the  distance  of  a  foot  from  each  other,  and  a 
small  hole  made  in  the  earth  behind  them.  The  play- 
ers then  go  about  ten  feet  from  the  hole,  into  which 
they  try  to  roll  a  small  piece  resembling  the  men 
used  at  checkers.  If  they  succeed  in  putting  it  into 
the  hole,  they  win  the  stake.  If  the  piece  rolls  be- 
tween the  pins,  but  does  not  go  into  the  hole,  nothing 
is  won  or  lost ;  but  the  wager  is  lost  if  the  checker 
rolls  outside  the  pins.  Entire  days  are  wasted  at 
these  games,  which  are  often  continued  through  the 
night  round  the  blaze  of  their  fires,  till  the  last 
article  of  clothing  or  the  last  blue  bead  is  lost  and 
won. 


202  OREGON. 

TREES. 

The  whole  neighborhood  of  the  coast  is  supplied 
with  great  quantities  of  excellent  timber.  The  pre- 
dominant growth  is  the  fir,  of  which  we  have  seen 
several  species.  The  first  species  grows  to  an  im- 
mense size,  and  is  very  commonly  twenty-seven  feet 
in  circumference,  six  feet  above  the  earth's  surface. 
They  rise  to  the  height  of  two  hundred  and  thirty 
feet,  and  one  hundred  and  twenty  of  that  height 
without  a  limb.  We  have  often  found  them  thirty- 
six  feet  in  circumference.  One  of  our  party  meas- 
ured one,  and  found  it  to  be  forty-two  feet  in  circum- 
ference at  a  point  beyond  the  reach  of  an  ordinary 
man.  This  tree  was  perfectly  sound  ;  and,  at  a 
moderate  calculation,  its  height  may  be  estimated  at 
three  hundred  feet. 

The  second  is  a  much  more  common  species,  and 
constitutes  at  least  one-half  of  the  timber  in  this 
neighborhood.  It  resembles  the  spruce,  rising  from 
one  hundred  and  sixty  to  one  hundred  and  eighty 
feet;  and  is  from  four  to  six  feet  in  diameter,  straight, 
round,  and  regularly  tapering. 

The  stem  of  the  black  alder  arrives  at  a  great  size. 
It  is  sometimes  found  growing  to  the  height  of  sixty 
or  seventy  feet,  and  is  from  two  to  four  in  diameter. 


ANIMALS.  203 

There  is  a  tree,  common  on  the  Columbia  River, 
much  resembling  the  ash,  and  another  resembling 
the  white  maple,  though  much  smaller. 

The  undergrowth  consists  of  honeysuckle,  alder, 
whortleberry,  a  plant  like  the  mountain-holly,  green 
brier,  and  fern. 

ANIMALS. 

The  beaver  of  this  country  is  large  and  fat :  the 
flesh  is  very  palatable,  and,  at  our  table,  was  a  real 
luxury.  On  the  7th  of  January,  our  hunter  found  a 
beaver  in  his  trap,  of  which  he  made  a  bait  for  taking 
others.  This  bait  will,  entice  the  beaver  to  the  trap 
as  far  as  he  can  smell  it;  and  this  may  be  fairly  stated 
to  be  at  the  distance  of  a  mile,  as  their  sense  of 
smelling  is  very  acute. 

The  sea-otter  resides  only  on  the  sea-coast  or  in 
the  neighborhood  of  the  salt  water.  When  fully 
grown,  he  attains  to  the  size  of  a  large  mastiff  dog. 
The  ears,  which  are  not  an  inch  in  length,  are  thick, 
pointed,  fleshy,  and  covered  with  short  hair ;  the  tail 
is  ten  inches  long,  thick  at  the  point  of  insertion,  and 
partially  covered  with  a  deep  fur  on  the  upper  side  ; 
the  legs  are  very  short,  covered  with  fur,  and  the 
feet  with  short  hair.  The  body  of  this  animal  is 


204  OREGON. 

long,  and  of  the  same  thickness  throughout.  From 
the  extremity  of  the  tail  to  the  nose,  they  measure 
five  feet.  The  color  is  a  uniform  dark  brown,  and 
when  in  good  condition,  and  in  season,  perfectly 
black.  This  animal  is\unrivalled  for  the  beauty,  rich- 
ness, and  softness  of  his  fur.  The  inner  part  of  the 
fur,  when  opened,  is  lighter  than  the  surface  in  its 
natural  position.  There  are  some  black  and  shin- 
ing hairs  intermixed  with  the  fur,  whi<5h  are  rather 
longer,  and  add  much  to  its  beauty. 

HORSES   AND   DOGS. 

The  horse  is  confined  chiefly  to  the  nations  inhab- 
iting the  great  plains  of  the  Columbia,  extending 
from  latitude  forty  to  fifty  north,  and  occupying  the 
tract  of  country  lying  between  the  Rocky  Mountains 
and  a  range  of  mountains  which  crosses  the  Colum- 
bia River  about  the  great  falls.  In  this  region  they 
are  very  numerous. 

They  appear  to  be  of  an  excellent  race,  lofty,  well 
formed,  active,  and  enduring.  Many  of  them  appear 
like  fine  English  coursers.  Some  of  them  are  pied, 
with  large  spots  of  white  irregularly  scattered,  and 
intermixed  with  a  dark -brown  bay.  The  greater 
part,  however,  are  of  a  uniform  color,  marked  with 


HORSES  AND  DOGS.  205 

stars,  and  white  feet.  The  natives  suffer  them  to  run 
at  large  in  the  plains,  the  grass  of  which  affords  them 
their  only  winter  subsistence ;  their  masters  taking 
no  trouble  to  lay  in  a  winter's  store  for  them.  They 
will,  nevertheless,  unless  much  exercised,  fatten  on 
the  dry  grass  afforded  by  the  plains  during  the  win- 
ter. The  plains  are  rarely  moistened  by  rain,  and^the 
grass  is  consequently  short  and  thin. 

Whether  the  horse  was  originally  a  native  of  this 
country  or  not,  the  soil  and  climate  appear  to  be  per- 
fectly well  adapted  to  his  nature.  Horses  are  said  to 
be  found  wild  in  many  parts  of  this  country. 

The  dog  is  small,  about  the  size  of  an  ordinary  cur. 
He  is  usually  party-colored ;  black,  white,  brown,  and 
brindle  being  the  colors  most  predominant.  The 
head  is  long,  the  nose  pointed  the  eyes  small,  the 
ears  erect  and  pointed  like  those  of  the  wolf.  The 
hair  is  short  and  smooth,  excepting  on  the,  tail,  where 
it  is  long  and  straight,  like  that  of  the  ordinary  cur- 
dog.  The  natives  never  eat  the  flesh  of  this  animal, 
and  he  appears  to  be  in  no  other  way  serviceable  to 
them  but  in  hunting  the  elk.  To  us,  on  the  contrary, 
it  has  now  become  a  favorite  food ;  for  it  is  found  to 
be  a  strong,  healthy  diet,  preferable  to  lean  deer  or 
elk,  and  much  superior  to  horse-flesh  in  any  state. 


OREGON. 
BURROWING   SQUIRREL. 

There  are  several  species  of  squirrels  not  different 
from  those  found  in  the  Atlantic  States.  There  is 
also  a  species  of  squirrel,  evidently  distinct,  which 
we  denominate  the  burrowing  squirrel.  He  measures 
one  foot  five  inches  in  length,  of  which  the  tail  com- 
prises two  and  a  half  inches  only.  The  neck  and 
legs  are  short ;  the  ears  are  likewise  short,  obtusely 
pointed,  and  lie  close  to  the  head.  The  eyes  are  of  a 
moderate  size,  the  pupil  black,  and  the  iris  of  a  dark, 
sooty  brown.  The  teeth,  and  indeed  the  whole  con- 
tour, resemble  those  of  the  squirrel. 

These  animals  associate  in  large  companies,  occu- 
pying with  their  burrows  sometimes  two  hundred 
acres  of  land.  The  burrows  are  separate,  and  each 
contains  ten  or  twelve  of  these  inhabitants.  There 
is  a  little  mound  in  front  of  the  hole,  formed  of  the 
earth  thrown  out  of  the  burrow ;  and  frequently  there 
are  three  or  four  distinct  holes,  forming  one  burrow, 
with  their  entrances  around  the  base  of  a  mound. 
These  mounds,  about  two  feet  in  height  and  four  in 
diameter,  are  occupied  as  watch-towers  by  the  inhab- 
itants of  these  little  communities.  The  squirrels  are 
irregularly  distributed  about  the  tract  they  thus  oc- 


BIRDS.  207 

eupy, —  ten,  twenty,  or  thirty  yards  apart.  When 
any  person  approaches,  they  make  a  shrill  whistling 
sound,  somewhat  resembling  "  tweet,  tweet,  tweet ;  " 
the  signal  for  their  party  to  take  the  alarm,  and  to 
retire  into  their  intrenchments.  They  feed  on  the 
grass  of  their  village,  the  limits  of  which  they  never 
venture  to  exceed.  As  soon  as  the  frost  commences, 
they  shut  themselves  up  in  their  caverns,  and  con- 
tinue until  the  spring  opens. 

BIRDS. 

THE  GROUSE,  OR  PRAIRIE-HEN.  —  This  is  peculiarly 
the  inhabitant  of  the  great  plains  of  the  Columbia, 
but  does  not  differ  from  those  of  the  upper  portion 
of  the  Missouri.  In  the  winter  season,  this  bird  is 
booted  to  the  first  joint  of  the  toes.  The  toes  are 
curiously  bordered  on  their  lower  edges  with  narrow, 
hard  scales,  which  are  placed  very  close  to  each 
other,  and  extend  horizontally  about  one-eighth  of 
an  inch  on  each  side  of  the  toes,  adding  much  to  the 
broadness  of  the  feet,  —  a  security  which  Nature  has 
furnished  them  for  passing  over  the  snow  with  more 
ease,  —  and,  what  is  very  remarkable,  in  the  summer 
season  these  scales  drop  from  the  feet.  The  color 
of  this  bird  is  a  mixture  of  dark  brown,  reddish,  and 


208  OREGON. 

yellowish  brown,  with  white  confusedly  mixed.  The 
reddish-brown  prevails  most  on  the  upper  parts  of 
the  body,  wings,  and  tail ;  and  the  white,  under  the 
belly  and  the  lower  parts  of  the  breast  and  tail. 
They  associate  in  large  flocks  in  autumn  and  winter ; 
and,  even  in  summer,  are  seen  in  companies  of  five  or 
six.  They  feed  on  grass,  insects,  leaves  of  various 
shrubs  in  the  plains,  and  the  seeds  of  several  species 
of  plants  which  grow  in  richer  soils.  In  winter,  their 
food  consists  of  the  buds  of  the  willow  and  cotton- 
wood,  and  native  berries. 

The  cock  of  the  plains  is  found  on  the  plains  of 
the  Columbia  in  great  abundance.  The  beak  is  large, 
short,  covered,  and  convex ;  the  upper  exceeding  the 
lower  chap.  The  nostrils  are  large,  and  the  back 
black.  The  color  is  a  uniform  mixture  of  a  dark- 
brown,  resembling  the  dove,  and  a  reddish  or  yellow- 
ish brown,  with  some  small  black  specks.  The  habits 
of  this  bird  resemble  those  of  the  grouse,  excepting 
that  his  food  is  the  leaf  and  buds  of  the  pulpy-leaved 
thorn.  The  flesh  is  dark,  and  only  tolerable  in  point 
of  flavor. 

HORNED   FROG. 

The  horned  lizard,  or  horned  frog,  called,  for  what 
reason  we  never  could  learn,  the  prairie  buffalo,  is 


HORNED  FROG.  209 

a  native  of  these  plains  as  well  as  of  those  of  the 
Missouri.  The  color  is  generally  brown,  intermixed 
with  yellowish  spots.  The  animal  is  covered  with 
minute  scales,  interspersed  with  small  horny  points, 
or  prickles,  on  the  upper  surface  of  the  body.  The 
belly  and  throat  resemble  those  of  the  frog,  and  are 
of  a  light  yellowish-brown.  The  edge  of  the  belly 
is  likewise  beset  with  small  horny  projections.  The 
eye  is  small  and  dark.  Above  and  behind  the  eyes 
there  are  several  bony  projections,  which  resemble 
horns  sprouting  from  the  head. 

These  animals  are  found  in  greatest  numbers  in 
the  sandy,  open  plains,  and  appear  most  abundant 
after  a  shower  of  rain.  They  are  sometimes  found 
basking  in  the  sunshine,  but  generally  conceal  them- 
selves in  little  holes  of  the  earth.  This  may  account 
for  their  appearance  in  such  numbers  after  rain,  as 
their  holes  may  thus  be  rendered  untenantable. 

14 


CHAPTER    XVI. 

THE  RETURN. 

1%/TARCH,  1806.  —  Many  reasons  had  inclined  us 
to  remain  at  Fort  Clatsop  till  the  1  st  of  April. 
Besides  the  want  of  fuel  in  the  Columbian  plains,  and 
the  impracticability  of  crossing  the  mountains  before 
the  beginning  of  June,  we  were  anxious  to  see  some 
of  the  foreign  traders,  from  whom,  by  our  ample  let- 
ters of  credit,  we  might  recruit  our  exhausted  stores 
of  merchandise.  About  the  middle  of  March,  how- 
ever, we  became  seriously  alarmed  for  the  want  of 
food.  The  elk,'our  chief  dependence,  had  at  length 
deserted  its  usual  haunts  in  our  neighborhood,  and  re- 
treated to  the  mountains.  We  were  too  poor  to  pur- 
chase food  from  the  Indians ;  so  that  we  were  some- 
times reduced,  notwithstanding  all  the  exertions  of 
our  hunters,  to  a  single  day's  provision  in  advance. 
The  men  too,  whom  the  constant  rains  and  confine- 
ment had  rendered  unhealthy,  might,  we  hoped,  be 

210 


THE  RETURN.  211 

benefited  by  leaving  the  coast,  and  resuming  the  ex- 
ercise of  travelling.  We  therefore  determined  to 
leave  Fort  Clatsop,  ascend  the  river  slowly,  consume 
the  month  of  March  in  the  woody  country,  where  we 
hoped  to  find  subsistence,  and  in  this  way  reach  the 
plains  about  the  1st  of  April,  before  which  time  it 
will  be  impossible  to  cross  them. 

During  the  winter,  we  have  been  very  industrious 
in  dressing  skins ;  so  that  we  now  have  a  sufficient 
quantity  of  clothing,  besides  between  three  and  four 
hundred  pairs  of  moccasons.  But  the  whole  stock  of 
goods  on  which  we  are  to  depend  for  the  purchase 
of  horses  or  of  food,  during  the  long  journey  of  four 
thousand  miles,  is  so  much  diminished,  that  it  might 
all  be  tied  in  two  handkerchiefs.  We  therefore  feel 
that  our  chief  dependence  must  be  on  our  guns, 
which,  fortunately,  are  all  in  good  order,  as  we  took 
the  precaution  of  bringing  a  number  of  extra  locks, 
and  one  of  our  men  proved  to  be  an  excellent  gun- 
smith. The  powder  had  been  secured  in  leaden  can- 
isters ;  and,  though  on  many  occasions  they  had  been 
under  water,  it  remained  perfectly  dry :  and  we  now 
found. ourselves  in  possession  of  one  hundred  and 
forty  pounds  of  powder,  and  twice  that  weight  of 
lead,  —  a  stock  quite  sufficient  for  the  route  home- 
wards. 


212  OREGON. 

We  were  now  ready  to  leave  Fort  Clatsop ;  but  the 
rain  prevented  us  for  several  days  from  calking  the 
canoes,  and  we  were  forced  to  wait  for  calm  weather 
before  we  could  attempt  to  pass  Point  William,  which 
projects  about  a  mile  and  a  half  into  the  sea,  forming, 
as  it  were,  the  dividing-line  between  the  river  and 
the  ocean;  for  the  water  below  is  salt,  while  that 
above  is  fresh. 

On  Inarch  23,  at  one  o'clock  in  the  afternoon,  we 
took  a  final  leave  of  Fort  Clatsop.  We  doubled 
Point  William  without  any  injury,  and  at  six  o'clock 
reached  the  mouth  of  a  small  creek,  where  we  found 
our  hunters.  They  had  been  fortunate  enough  to 
kill  two  elks,  which  were  brought  in,  and  served  for 
breakfast  next  morning. 

Next  day,  we  were  overtaken  by  two  Wakiacums, 
who  brought  two  dogs,  for  which  they  wanted  us  to 
give  them  some  tobacco ;  but,  as  we  had  very  little 
of  that  article  left,  they  were  obliged  to  go  away 
disappointed.  We  received  at  the  same  time  an 
agreeable  supply  of  three  eagles  and  a  large  goose, 
brought  in  by  the  hunters. 

We  passed  the  entrance  of  Cowalitz  River,  seventy 
miles  from  our  winter  camp.  This  stream  enters  the 
Columbia  from  the  north ;  is  one  hundred  and  fifty 


THE  RETURN.  213 

yards  wide ;  deep  and  navigable,  as  the  Indians  as- 
sert, for  a  considerable  distance ;  and  probably  waters 
the  country  west  and  north  of  the  Cascade  Moun- 
tains, which  cross  the  Columbia  between  the  great 
falls, and  rapids.  During  the  day,  we  passed  a  num- 
ber of  fishing-camps  on  both  sides  of  the  river,  and 
were  constantly  attended  by  small  parties  of  Skil- 
loots,  who  behaved  in  the  most  orderly  manner,  and 
from  whom  we  purchased  as  much  fish  and  roots  as 
we  wanted,  on  moderate  terms.  The  night  continued 
as  the  day  'had  been,  —  cold,  wet,  and  disagreeable  ; 
which  is  the  general  character  of  the  weather  in  this 
region  at  this  season. 

March  29.  —  At  an  early  hour,  we  resumed  our 
route,  and  halted  for  breakfast  at  the  upper  end  of  an 
island  where  is  properly  the  commencement  of  the 
great  Columbian  Valley.  We  landed  at  a  village  of 
fourteen  large  wooden  houses.  The  people  received 
us  kindly,  and  spread  before  us  wappatoo  and  ancho- 
vies ;  but,  as  soon  as  we  had  finished  enjoying  this 
hospitality  (if  it  deserves  that  name),  they  began  to 
ask  us  for  presents.  They  were,  however,  perfectly 
satisfied  with  the  small  articles  which  we  distributed 
according  to  custom,  and  equally  pleased  with  our 
purchasing  some  wappatoo,  twelve  dogs,  and  two  sea- 


214  OREGON. 

otter  skins.  We  also  gave  the  chief  a  small  medal, 
which  he  soon  transferred  to  his  wife. 

April  1.  —  We  met  a  number  of  canoes  filled  with 
families  descending  the  river.  These  people  told  us 
that  they  lived  at  the  Great  Rapids,  but  that  a 
scarcity  of  provisions  there  had  induced  them  to 
come  down  in  hopes  of  finding  subsistence  in  this 
fertile  valley.  All  those  who  lived  at  the  rapids,  as 
well  as  the  nations  above  them,  they  said,  were  in 
much  distress  for  want  of  food,  having  consumed 
their  winter  store  of  dried  fish,  and  not  expecting 
the  return  of  the  salmon  before  the  next  full  moon, 
which  will  be  on  the  2d  of  May. 

This  intelligence  was  disagreeable  and  embarrass- 
ing. From  the  falls  to  the  Chopunnish  nation,  the 
plains  aiford  no  deer,  elk,  or  antelope,  on  which  we 
can  rely  for  subsistence.  The  horses  are  very  poor 
at  this  season;  and  the  dogs  must  be  in  the  same 
condition,  if  their  food,  the  fish,  have  failed.  On  the 
other  hand,  it  is  obviously  inexpedient  to  wait  for 
the  return  of  the  salmon,  since,  in  that  case,  we  may 
not  reach  the  Missouri  before  the  ice  will  prevent  our 
navigating  it.  We  therefore  decided  to  remain  here 
only  till  we  collect  meat  enough  to  last  us  till  we 
reach  the  Chopunnish  nation,  with  whom  we  left  our 


THE  RETURN.  215 

horses  on  our  downward  journey,  trusting  that  we 
shall  find  the  animals  safe,  and  have  them  faithfully 
returned  to  us  ;  for,  without  them,  the  passage  of  the 
mountains  will  be  almost  impracticable. 

April  2,  1806.  —  Several  canoes  arrived  to  visit  us; 
and  among  the  party  were  two  young  men  who  be- 
longed to  a  nation,  which,  they  said,  resides  at  the  falls 
of  a  large  river  which  empties  itself  into  the  south 
side  of  the  Columbia,  a  few  miles  below  us  ;  and  they 
drew  a  map  of  the  country  with  a  coal  on  a  mat.  In 
order  to  verify  this  information,  Capt.  Clarke  per- 
suaded one  of  the  young  men,  by  the  present  of  a 
burning-glass,  to  accompany  him  to  the  river,  in 
search  of  which  he  immediately  set  out  with  a  canoe 
and  seven  of  our  men. 

In  the  evening,  Capt.  Clarke  returned  from  his 
excursion.  After  descending  about  twenty  miles,  he 
entered  the  mouth  of  a  large  river,  which  was  con- 
cealed, by  three  small  islands  opposite  its  entrance, 
from  those  who  pass  up  or  down  the  Columbia.  This 
river,  which  the  Indians  call  Multnomah,  from  a  na- 
tion of  the  same  name  residing  near  it  on  Wappatoo 
Island,  enters  the  Columbia  one  hundred  and  forty 
miles  above  the  mouth  of  the  latter  river.  The  cur- 
rent of  the  Multnomah,  which  is  also  called  Willamett, 


216  OREGON. 

is  as  gentle  as  that  of  the  Columbia ;  and  it  appears  to 
possess  water  enough  for  the  largest  ship,  since,  on 
sounding  with  a  line  of  five  fathoms,  they  could  find 
no  bottom. 

Capt.  Clarke  ascended  the  river  to  the  village  of 
his  guide.  He  found  here  a  building  two  hundred 
and  twenty-six  feet  in  front,  entirely  above  ground, 
and  all  under  one  roof;  otherwise  it  would  seem  more 
like  a  range  of  buildings,  as  it  is  divided  into  seven 
distinct  apartments,  each  thirty  feet  square.  The 
roof  is  formed  of  rafters,  with  round  poles  laid  on 
them  longitudinally.  The  whole  is  covered  with  a 
double  row  of  the  bark  of  the  white  cedar,  secured 
by  splinters  of  dried  fir,  inserted  through  it  at  regu- 
lar distances.  In  this  manner,  the  roof  is  made  light, 
strong,  and  durable. 

In  the  house  were  several  old  people  of  both 
sexes,  who  were  treated  with  much  respect,  and  still 
seemed  healthy,  though  most  of  them  were  perfectly 
blind. 

On  inquiring  the  cause  of  the  decline  of  their  vil- 
lage, which  was  shown  pretty  clearly  by  the  remains 
of  several  deserted  buildings,  an  old  man,  father  of 
the  guide,  and  a  person  of  some  distinction,  brought 
forward  a  woman  very  much  marked  with  the  small- 


WAPPATOO  ISLAND  AND  ROOT.  217 

pox,  and  said,  that,  when  a  girl,  she  was  near  dying 
with  the  disorder  which  had  left  those  marks,  and 
that  the  inhabitants  of  the  bouses  now  in  ruins  had 
fallen  victims  to  the  same  disease. 

WAPPATOO   ISLAND   AND   ROOT. 

Wappatoo  Island  is  a  large  extent  of  country  lying 
between  the  Multnomah  River  and  an  arm  of  the  Co- 
lumbia. The  island  is  about  twenty  miles  long,  and 
varies  in  breadth  from  five  to  ten  miles.  The  land  is 
high,  and  extremely  fertile,  and  on  most  parts  is  sup- 
plied with  a  heavy  growth  of  cottonwood,  ash,  and 
willow.  But  the  chief  wealth  of  this  island  consists 
of  the  numerous  ponds  in  the  interior,  abounding  with 
the  common  arrow-head  (Sagittaria  sagittifolia)^  to 
the  root  of  which  is  attached  a  bulb  growing  beneath 
it,  in  the  mud.  This  bulb,  to  which  the  Indians  give 
the  name  of  wappatoo,  is  the  great  article  of  food, 
and  almost  the  staple  article  of  commerce,  on  the 
Columbia.  It  is  never  out  of  season ;  so  that,  at  all 
times  of  the  year,  the  valley  is  frequented  by  the 
neighboring  Indians  who  come  to* gather  it.  It  is 
collected  chiefly  by  the  women,  who  employ  for  the 
purpose  canoes  from  ten  to  fourteen  feet  in  length, 
about  two  feet  wide,  and  nine  inches  deep,  tapering 


218  OREGON. 

from  the  middle,  where  they  are  about  twenty  inches 
wide.  They  are  sufficient  to  contain  a  single  person 
and  several  bushels  of  roots;  yet  so  light,  that  a  woman 
can  carry  one  with  ease.  She  takes  one  of  these  ca- 
noes into  a  pond  where  the  water  is  as  high  as  the 
breast,  and,  by  means  of  her  toes,  separates  from  the 
root  this  bulb,  which,  on  being  freed  from  the  mud, 
rises  immediately  to  the  surface  of  the  water,  and  is 
thrown  into  the  canoe.  In  this  manner,  these  patient 
females  remain  in  the  water  for  several  hours,  even 
in  the  depth  of  winter.  This  plant  is  found  through 
the  whole  extent  of  the  valley  in  which  we  now  are, 
but  does  not  grow  on  the  Columbia  farther  eastward. 

SCENERY   OF   THE   EIVEK   AND    SHORES. 

Above  the  junction  of  the  Maltnomah  River,  we 
passed  along  under  high,  steep,  and  rocky  sides  of 
the  mountains,  which  here  close  in  on  each  side  of 
the  river,  forming  stupendous  precipices,  covered 
with  the  fir  and  white  cedar.  Down  these  heights 
frequently  descend  the  most  beautiful  cascades,  5— 
one  of  which,  a  la*rge  stream,  throws  itself  over  a  per- 
pendicular rock,  three  hundred  feet  above  the  water  • 
while  other  smaller  streams  precipitate  themselves 
from  a  still  greater  elevation,  and,  separating  into  a 


SCENERY  OF  THE  RIVER  AND  SHORES.          219 

mist,  again  collect,  and  form  a  second  cascade  before 
they  reach  the  bottom  of  the  rocks. 

The  hills  on  both  sides  of  the  river  are  about  two 
hundred  and  fifty  feet  high,  generally  abrupt  and 
craggy,  and  in  many  places  presenting  a  perpendicu- 
lar face  of  black,  hard,  basaltic  rock.  From  the  top 
of  these  hills,  the  country  extends  itself,  in  level 
plains,  to  a  very  great  distance. 

To  one  remarkable  elevation  we  gave  the  name  of 
Beacon  Rock.  It  stands  on  the  north  side  of  the 
river,  insulated  from  the  hills.  The  northern  side 
has  a  partial  growth  of  fir  or  pine.  To  the  south,  it 
rises  in  an  unbroken  precipice  to  the  height  of  seven 
hundred  feet,  where  it  terminates  in  a  sharp  point, 
and  may  be  seen  at  the  distance  of  twenty  miles. 
This  rock  may  be  considered  as  the  point  where  tide- 
water commences. 

April  19.  —  We  formed  our  camp  at  the  foot  of  the 
Long  Narrows,  a  little  above  a  settlement  of  Skilloots. 
Their  dwellings  were  formed  by  sticks  set  in  the 
ground,  and  covered  with  mats  and  straw,  and  so 
large,  that  each  was  the  residence  of  several  families. 

The  whole  village  was  filled  with  rejoicing  at  hav- 
ing caught  a  salmon,  which  was  considered  as  the 
harbinger  of  vast  quantities  that  would  arrive  in  a 


220  OREGON. 

few  days.  In  the  belief  that  it  would  hasten  their 
coming,  the  Indians,  according  to  their  custom, 
dressed  the  fish,  and  cut  it  into  small  pieces,  one 
of  which  was  given  to  every  child  in  the  village ; 
and,  in  the  good  humor  excited  by  this  occurrence, 
they  parted,  though  reluctantly,  with  four  horses, 
for  which  we  gave  them  two  kettles,  reserving  to 
ourselves  only  one. 

We  resumed  our  route,  and  soon  after  halted  on  a 
hill,  from  the  top  of  which  we  had  a  commanding 
view  of  the  range  of  mountains  in  which  Mount 
Hood  stands,  and  which  continued  south  as  far  as 
the  eye  could  reach;  their  summits  being  covered 
with  snow.  Mount  Hood  bore  south  thirty  degrees 
west;  and  another  snowy  summit,  which  we  have 
called  Mount  Jefferson,  south  ten  degrees  west. 

Capt.  Clarke  crossed  the  river,  with  nine  men 
and  a  large  part  of  the  merchandise,  to  purchase, 
if  possible,  twelve  horses  to  transport  our  baggage, 
and  some  pounded  fish,  as  a  reserve,  on  the  passage 
across  the  mountains.  He  succeeded  in  purchasing 
only  four  horses,  and  those  at  double  the  price 
that  had  been  paid  to  the  Shoshonees. 

April  20.  —  As  it  was  much  for  our  interest  to  pre- 
serve the  good  will  of  these  people,  we  passed  over 


SCENERY  OF  THE  EIVER  AND  SHORES.          221 

several  small  thefts  which  they  had  committed ;  but 
this  morning  we  learned  that  six  tomahawks  and  a 
knife  had  been  stolen  during  the  night.  We  ad- 
dressed ourselves  to  the  chief,  who  seemed  angry 
with  his  people ;  but  we  did  not  recover  the  articles : 
and  soon  afterwards  two  of  our  spoons  were  missing. 
We  therefore  ordered  them  all  from  the  camp.  They 
left  us  in  ill-humor,  and  we  therefore  kept  on  our 
guard  against  any  insult. 

April  22.  —  We  began  our  march  at  seven  o'clock. 
We  had  just  reached  the  top  of  a  hill  near  the  village, 
when  the  load  of  one  of  the  horses  turned ;  and  the 
animal,  taking  fright  at  a  robe  which  still  adhered  to 
him,  ran  furiously  toward  the  village.  Just  as  he 
came  there,  the  robe  fell,  and  an  Indian  made  way 
with  it.  The  horse  was  soon  caught ;  but  the  robe 
was  missing,  and  the  Indians  denied  having  seen  it. 
These  repeated  acts  of  knavery  had  quite  exhausted 
our  patience ;  and  Capt.  Lewis  set  out  for  the  village, 
determined  to  make  them  deliver  up  the  robe,  or  to 
burn  their  houses  to  the  ground.  This  retaliation 
was  happily  rendered  unnecessary;  for  on  his  way 
he  met  two  of  our  men,  who  had  found  the  robe  in 
one  of  the  huts,  hid  behind  some  baggage. 

April  24.  —  The  Indians  had  promised  to  take  our 


222  OREGON. 

canoes  in  exchange  for  horses  ;  but,  when  they  found 
that  we  were  resolved  on  travelling  by  land,  they  re- 
fused giving  us  any  thing  for  them,  in  hopes  that  we 
would  be  forced  to  leave  them.  Disgusted  at  this 
conduct,  we  determined  rather  to  cut  them  in  pieces 
than  suffer  these  people  to  possess  them;  and  actually 
began  to  do  so,  when  they  consented  to  give  us  sev- 
eral strands  of  beads  for  each  canoe. 

We  had  now  a  sufficient  number  of  horses  to  carry 
our  baggage,  and  therefore  proceeded  wholly  by  land. 
Passing  between  the  hills  and  the  northern  shore  of 
the  river,  we  had  a  difficult  and  fatiguing  march  over 
a  road  alternately  sandy  and  rocky. 

The  country  through  which  we  have  passed  for 
several  days  is  of  uniform  character.  The  hills  on 
both  sides  of  the  river  are  about  two  hundred  and 

fifty  feet  high,  in  many  places  presenting  a  perpen- 

« 
dicular  face  of  black,  solid  rock.     From  the  top  of 

these  hills,  the  country  extends,  in  level  plains,  to  a 
very  great  distance,  and,  though  not  as  fertile  as 
land  near  the  falls,  produces  an  abundant  supply  of 
low  grass,  which  is  an  excellent  food  for  horses.  The 
grass  must  indeed  be  unusually  nutritious :  for  even 
at  this  season  of  the  year,  after  wintering  on  the  dry 
grass  of  the  plains,  and  being  used  with  greater  se- 

' 


SCENERY  OF  THE  RIVER  AND  SHORES.          223 

verity  than  is  usual  among  the  whites,  many  of  the 
horses  were  perfectly  fat ;  nor  had  we  seen  a  single 
one  that  was  really  poor. 

Having  proceeded  thirty-one  miles,  we  halted  for 
the  night  not  far  from  some  houses  of  the  Walla- 
wallas.  Soon  after  stopping,  we  were  joined  by  seven 
of  that  tribe,  among  whom  we  recognized  a  chief  by 
the  nam'e  of  Yellept,  who  had  visited  us  in  October 
last,  when  we  gave  him  a  medal. 

He  appeared  very  much  pleased  at  seeing  us  again, 
and  invited  us  to  remain  at  his  village  three  or  four 
days,  during  which  he  would  supply  us  with  such 
food  as  they  had,  and  furnish  us  with  horses  for  our 
journey.  After  the  cold,  inhospitable  treatment  we 
had  lately  received,  this  kind  offer  was  peculiarly 
acceptable.  After  having  made  a  hasty  meal,  we  ac- 
companied him  to  his  village.  Immediately  on  our 
arrival,  Yellept,  who  proved  to  be  a  man  of  much 
influence,  collected  the  inhabitants,  and  after  having 
made  an  harangue  to  them,  the  object  of  which  was  to 
induce  them  to  treat  us  .hospitably,  set  them  an  exam- 
ple by  bringing  himself  an  armful  of  wood,  and  a  plat- 
ter containing  three  roasted  mullets.  They  imme- 
diately followed  the  example  by  furnishing  us  with 
an  abundance  of  the  only  sort  of  fuel  they  use,  —  the 


224  OREGON. 

stems  of  shrubs  growing  in  the  plains.  We  then  pur- 
chased  four  dogs,  on  which  we  supped  heartily,  hav- 
ing been  on  short  allowance  for  two  days  previously. 

We  learned  from  these  people,  that,  opposite  to 
their  village,  there  was  a  route  which  led  to  the 
mouth  of  the  Kooskooskie ;  that  the  road  was  good, 
and  passed  over  a  level  country  well  supplied  with 
water  and  grass ;  and  that  we  should  meet  with 
plenty  of  deer  and  antelope.  We  knew  that  a  road 
in  that  direction  would  shorten  our  route  eighty 
miles  ;  and  we  concluded  to  adopt  this  route. 

Fortunately  there  was  among  these  Walla-wallas  a 
prisoner  belonging  to  a  tribe  of  the  Shoshonee  In- 
dians. Our  Shoshonee  woman,  Sacajaweah,  though 
she  belonged  to  another  tribe,  spoke  the  same  lan- 
guage as  this  prisoner ;  and  by  their  means  we  were 
enabled  to  explain  ourselves  to  the  Indians,  and  to 
answer  all  their  inquiries  with  respect  to  ourselves 
and  the  object  of  our  journey.  Our  conversation 
inspired  them  with  such  confidence,  that  they  soon 
brought  several  sick  persons  for  whom  they  re- 
quested our  assistance.  We  splintered  the  broken 
arm  of  one,  gave  some  relief  to  another  whose  knee 
was  contracted  by  rheumatism,  and  administered 
what  we  thought  would  be  useful  for  ulcers  and 


SCENERY  OF  THE  RIVER  AND  SHORES.     '    225 

eruptions  of  the  skin  on  various  parts  of  the  body, 
which  are  very  common  disorders  among  them.  But 
our  most  valuable  medicine  was  eye-water,  which  we 
distributed,  and  which,  indeed,  they  very  much  re- 
quired ;  for  complaints  of  the  eyes,  occasioned  by 
living  so  much  on  the  water,  and  aggravated  by 
the  fine  sand  of  the  plains,  were  universal  among 
them. 

We  were  by  no  means  dissatisfied  at  this  new 
resource  for  obtaining  subsistence,  as  the  Indians 
would  give  us  no  provisions  without  merchandise, 
and  our  stock  was  very  much  reduced.  We  carefully 
abstained  from  giving  them  any  thing  but  harmless 
medicines;  and  our  prescriptions  might  be  useful, 
and  were  therefore  entitled  to  some  remuneration. 

May  5.  —  Almost  the  only  instance  of  rudeness  we 
encountered  in  our  whole  trip  occurred  here.  We 
made  our  dinner  on  two  dogs  and  a  small  quantity  of 
roots.  While  we  were  eating,  an  Indian  standing  by, 
and  looking  with  great  derision  at  our  eating  dog's- 
flesh,  threw  a  half-starved  puppy  almost  into  Capt. 
Lewis's  plate,  laughing  heartily  at  the  humor  of  it. 
Capt.  Lewis  took  up  the  animal,  and  flung  it  back 
with  great  force  into  the  fellow's  face,  and,  seizing 
his  tomahawk,  threatened  to  cut  him  down  if  he 

15 


226   •  OREGON. 

dared  to  repeat  such  insolence.  He  went  off,  appa- 
rently much  mortified;  and  we  continued  our  dog- 
repast  very  quietly. 

Here  we  met  our  old  Chopunnish  guide  and  his 
family ;  and  soon  afterward  one  of  our  horses,  which 
had  been  separated  from  the  others  in  the  charge  of 
Twisted-hair,  was  caught,  and  restored  to  us. 

THE  WALLA-WALLA. 

We  reached  (May  1)  a  branch  of  the  Walla-walla 
River.  The  hills  of  this  creek  are  generally  abrupt 
and  rocky;  but  the  narrow  bottom  bordering  the 
stream  is  very  fertile,  and  both  possess  twenty 
times  as  much  timber  as  the  Columbia  itself.  In- 
deed, we  now  find,  for  the  first  time  since  leaving 
Fort  Clatsop,  an  abundance  of  fire-wood.  The  growth 
consists  of  cotton-wood,  birch,  the  crimson  haw,  wil- 
low, choke-cherry,  yellow  currants,  gooseberry  ^  honey- 
suckle, rose-bushes,  sumac,  together  with  some  corn- 
grass  and  rushes. 

The  advantage  of  a  comfortable  fire  induced  us,  as 
the  night  was  come,  to  halt  at  this  place.  We  were 
soon  supplied  by  Drewyer  with  a  beaver  and  an 
otter ;  of  which  we  took  only  a  part  of  the  beaver, 
and  gave  the  rest  to  the  Indians.  The  otter  is  a 


THE   WALLA-WALLA.  227 

favorite  food,  though  much  inferior,  in  our  estimation, 
to  the  dog,  which  they  will  not  eat.  The  horse,  too, 
is  seldom  eaten,  and  never  except  when  absolute 
necessity  compels.  This  fastidiousness  does  not,  how- 
ever, seem  to  proceed  so  much  from  any  dislike  to 
the  food  as  from  attachment  to  the  animal ;  for  many 
of  them  eat  very  freely  of  the  horse-beef  we  give 
them. 

There  is  very  little  difference  in  the  general  face 
of  the  country  here  from  that  of  the  plains  on  the 
Missouri,  except  that  the  latter  are  enlivened  by 
vast  herds  of  buffaloes,  elks,  and  other  animals,  which 
are  wanting  here.  Over  these  wide  bottoms  we  con- 
tinued, till,  at  the  distance  of  twenty-six  miles  from 
our  last  encampment,  we  halted  for  the  night. 

We  had  scarcely  encamped,  when  three  young 
men  from  the  Walla-walla  village  came  in  with  a 
steel-trap,  which  we  Had  inadvertently  left  behind, 
and  which  they  had  come  a  whole  day's  journey 
on  purpose  to  restore.  This  act  of  integrity  was 
the  more  pleasing  because  it  corresponds  perfectly 
with  the  general  behavior  of  the  Walla-wallas,  among 
whom  we  had  lost  carelessly  several  knives,  which 
were  always  returned  as  soon  as  found.  We  may, 
indeed,  justly  affirm,  that,  of  all  the  Indians  whom  we 


228         f  OREGON. 

have  met,  the  Walla-wallas  were  the  most  hospitable, 
honest,  and  sincere. 

TWISTED-HAIR. 

On  Wednesday,  the  7th  of  May,  we  reached  the 
Kooskooskee,  and  found  it  much  more  navigable  than 
when  we  descended  it  last  year.  The  water  was 
risen,  and  covered  the  rocks  and  shoals.  Here  we 
found  the  chief,  named  Twisted-hair,  in  whose  charge 
we  had  left  our  horses  in  our  outward  journey.  We 
had  suspicions  that  our  horses,  and  especially  our  sad- 
dles, might  not  be  easily  recoverable  after  our  long 
absence.  The  Twisted-hair  was  invited  to  come,  and 
smoke  with  us.  He  accepted  the  invitation,  and,  as 
we  smoked  our  pipes  over  the  fire,  informed  us,  that, 
according  to  his  promise,  he  had  collected  the  horses, 
and  taken  charge  of  them ;  but  another  chief,  the 
Broken-arm,  becoming  jealous  of  him  because  the 
horses  were  confided  to  his  care,  was  constantly  quar- 
relling with  him.  At  length,  being  an  old  man,  and 
unwilling  to  live  in  perpetual  disputes,  he  had  given 
up  the  care  of  the  horses,  which  had  consequently 
become  scattered.  The  greater  part  of  them  were, 
however,  still  in  this  neighborhood.  He  added,  that 
on  the  rise  of  the  river,  in  the  spring,  the  earth  had 


TWISTED-HAIR.  229 

fallen  from  the  door  of  the  cache,  and  exposed  the 
saddles,  some  of  which  had  probably  been  lost ;  but, 
as  soon  as  he  was  acquainted  with  the  situation  of 
them,  he  had  had  them  buried  in  another  place,  where 
they  were  now.  He  promised  that  he  would,  on  the 
morrow,  send  his  young  men,  and  collect  such  of  the 
horses  as  were  in  the  neighborhood.  He  kept  his 
word.  Next  day,  the  Indians  brought  in  twenty-one 
of  the  horses,  the  greater  part  of  which  were  in  ex- 
cellent order;  and  the  Twisted-hair  restored  about 
half  the  saddles  we  had  left  in  the  cache,  and  some 
powder  and  lead  which  were  buried  at  the  same 
place. 


CHAPTER    XVII. 

THE   ROCKY  MOUNTAINS. 

~|l  J~AY  17.  —  The  country  along  the  Rocky  Moun- 
tains,  for  several  hundred  miles  in  length  and 
fifty  in  width,  is  a  high  level  plain ;  in  all  its  parts 
extremely  fertile,  and  in  many  places  covered  with  a 
growth  of  tall,  long-leaved  pine.  Nearly  the  whole 
of  this  wide  tract  is  covered  with  a  profusion  of 
grass  and  plants,  which  are  at  this  time  as  high  as 
the  knee.  Among  these  are  a  variety  of  esculent 
plants  and  roots,  yielding  a  nutritious  and  agreeable 
food.  The  air  is  pure  and  dry ;  the  climate  as  mild 
as  that  of  the  same  latitudes  in  the  Atlantic  States, 
and  must  be  equally  healthy,  since  all  the  disorders 
whicl}  we  have  witnessed  may  fairly  be  imputed  to 
other  causes  than  the  climate.  Of  course,  the  de- 
grees of  heat  and  cold  obey  the  influence  of  situa- 
tion. Thus  the  rains  of  the  low  grounds  are  snows 
in  the  high  plains ;  and,  while  the  sun  shines  with 

230 


CROSSING   THE  MOUNTAINS.  231 

intense  heat  in  the  confined  river-bottoms,  the  plains 
enjoy  a  much  cooler  air  ;  and,  at  the  foot  of  fhe  moun- 
tains, the  snows  are  even  now  many  feet  in  depth. 

CROSSING  THE  MOUNTAINS. 

An  attempt  to  cross  the  mountains  in  the  early 
part,  of  June  failed  on  account  of  the  snow,  which 
still  covered  the  track.  It  was  plain  we  should  have 
no  chance  of  finding  either  grass  or  underwood  for 
our  horses.  To  proceed,  therefore,  would  be  to  hazard 
the  loss  of  our  horses ;  in  which  case,  if  we  should  be 
so  fortunate  as  to  escape  with  our  lives,  we  should 
be  obliged  to  abandon  our  papers  and  collections. 
It  was  accordingly  decided  not  to  venture  farther ; 
to  deposit  here  all  the  baggage  and  provisions  for 
which  we  had  no  immediate  use,  and  to  return  to 
some  spot  where  we  might  live  by  hunting  till  the 
snow  should  have  melted,  or  a  guide  be  procured  to 
conduct  us.  We  submitted,  June  17,  to  the  mortifica- 
tion of  retracing  our  steps  three  days'  march. 

On  the  24th  June,  having  been  so  fortunate  as  to 
engage  three  Indians  to  go  with  us  to  the  falls  of  the 
Missouri  for  the  compensation  of  two  guns,  we  set 
out  on  our  second  attempt  to  cross  the  mountains. 
On  reaching  the  place  where  we  had  left  our  bag- 


232  OREGON. 

gage,  we  found  our  deposit  perfectly  safe.  It  re- 
quired two  hours  to  arrange  our  baggage,  and  pre- 
pare a  hasty  meal ;  after  which  the  guides  urged  us 
to  set  off,  as  we  had  a  long  ride  to  make  before  we 
could  reach  a  spot  where  there  was  grass  for  our 
horses.  We  mounted,  and  followed  their  steps  ;  some- 
times crossed  abruptly  steep  hills,  and  then  wound 
along  their  sides,  near  tremendous  precipices,  where, 
had  our  horses  slipped,  we  should  have  been  irrecov- 
erably lost.  Our  route  lay  along  the  ridges  which 
separate  the  waters  of  the  Kooskooskie  and  Chopun- 
nish,  and  above  the  heads  of  all  the  streams ;  so  that 
we  met  no  running  water.  Late  in  the  evening,  we 
reached  a  spot  where  we  encamped  near  a  good 
spring  of  water.  It  was  on  the  steep  side  of  a  moun- 
tain, with  no  wood,  and  a  fair  southern  aspect,  from 
which  the  snow  seemed  to  have  disappeared  for  about 
ten  days,  and  an  abundant  growth  of  young  grass,  like 
greensward,  had  sprung  up.  There  was  also  a  species 
of  grass  not  unlike  flag,  with  a  broad  succulent  leaf, 
which  is  confined  to  the  upper  parts  of  the  moun- 
tains. It  is  a  favorite  food  with  the  horses ;  but  it 
was  then  either  covered  with  snow,  or  just  making 
its  appearance. 

June  27.  —  We  continued  our  route  over  the  high 


CROSSING   THE  MOUNTAINS.  233 

and  steep  hills  of  the  same  great  ridge.  At  eight 
miles'  distance,  we  reached  an  eminence  where  the 
Indians  have  raised  a  conical  mound  of  stone  six  or 
eight  feet  high.  From  this  spot  we  have  a  command- 
ing view  of  the  surrounding  mountains,  which  so 
completely  enclose  us,  that,  although  we  have  once 
passed  them,  we  should  despair  of  ever  escaping  from 
them  without  the  assistance  of  the  Indians  ;  but  our 
guides  traverse  this  trackless  region  with  a  kind  of 
instinctive  sagacity.  They  never  hesitate  ;  they  are 
never  embarrassed  ;  yet  so  undeviating  is  their  step, 
that,  wherever  the  snow  has  disappeared  for  even  a 
hundred  paces,  we  find  the  summer  road.  With  their 
aid,  the  snow  is  scarcely  a  disadvantage;  for  although 
we  are  often  obliged  to  slide  down,  yet  the  fallen 
timber  and  the  rocks,  which  are  now  covered  up, 
were  much  more  troublesome  when  we  passed  in  the 
autumn. 

NOTE. 

A  later  traveller  through  this  region  writes,  "  The  moun- 
tains are  indeed  rocky.  They  are  rocks  heaped  upon  rocks, 
with  no  vegetation,  excepting  a  few  cedars  growing  out  of  the 
crevices  near  their  base.  Their  tops  are  covered  with  perpetual 
snow.  The  main  ridge  of  the  mountains  is  of  gneiss  rock ;  yet, 
to-day,  parallel  ridges  of  a  rock,  nearly  allied  to  basalt,  have 
abounded.  These  ridges  appear  to  be  volcanic,  forced  up  in 


234  OREGON. 

THE  PARTY  AGREE  TO   SEPARATE. 

July  3,  1806.  — It  was  agreed  here  that  the  expe- 
dition should  be  divided,  to  unite  again  at  the  con- 
fluence of  the  Missouri  and  the  Yellowstone.  The 
separation  took  place  near  the  point  where  Clarke's 
River  is  crossed  by  the  forty-seventh  parallel  of  lati- 
tude. Capt.  Lewis,  with  nine  men,  was  to  cross  the 
mountains  in  a  direction  as  nearly  due  east  as  possi- 
ble, expecting  to  find  some  tributary  of  the  Missouri, 
by  following  which  he  might  reach  that  river,  and  by 
it  retrace  his  way  homeward.  Capt.  Clarke,  with  the 
remainder  of  the  party,  was  to  seek  the  head  waters 
of  the  Yellowstone,  and  follow  that  stream  to  the 
proposed  place  of  re-union. 

In  conformity  with  this  arrangement,  Capt.  Lewis, 
under  the  guidance  of  friendly  Indians,  crossed  the 
mountains  by  a  route  which  led  him,  after  travelling 

dikes  at  different  distances  from  each  other,  running  from  east- 
north-east  to  west-south-west.  The  strata  are  mostly  vertical ; 
but  some  are  a  little  dipped  to  the  south. 

"  Our  encampment  was  near  a  small  stream  which  runs 
through  a  volcanic  chasm,  which  is  more  than  a  hundred  feet 
deep,  with  perpendicular  sides.  Here  was  a  passage  made  for 
the  water  by  fire" 


CONFLICT   WITH  THE  INDIANS.  i535 

one  hundred  and  four  miles,  to  Medicine  River,  and 
by  that  river  to  the  Missouri.  He  reached  the  falls 
of  the  Missouri  on  the  17th  of  July,  and  leaving 
there  a  portion  of  his  party,  under  Sergt.  Gass,  to 
make  preparations  for  transporting  their  baggage 
and  canoes  round  the  falls,  set  out,  accompanied 
by  Drewyer  and  the  two  brothers  Fields,  with  six 
horses,  to  explore  Maria's  River,  to  ascertain  its  ex- 
tent toward  the  north.  From  the  18th  to  the  26th, 
they  were  engaged  in  this  exploration.  On  the  eve 
of  their  return,  an  event  occurred,  which,  being  the 

only  instance  in  which  the  expedition  was  engaged 

• 

in  any  conflict  with  the  Indians  with  loss  of  life, 
requires  to  be  particularly  related. 

CONFLICT  WITH  THE  INDIANS. 

We  were  passing  through  a  region  frequented  by 
the  Minnetarees,  a  band  of  Indians  noted  for  their 
thievish  propensities  and  unfriendly  dispositions. 
Capt.  Lewis  was  therefore  desirous  to  avoid  meet- 
ing with  them.  Drewyer  had  been  sent  out  for 
game,  and  Capt.  Lewis  ascended  a  hill  to  look  over 
the  country.  Scarcely  had  he  reached  the  top,  when 
he  saw,  about  a  mile  on  his  left,  a  collection  of  about 
thirty  horses.  By  the  aid  of  his  spy-glass,  he  discov- 


236  OREGON. 

ered  that  one-half  of  the  horses  were  saddled,  and 
that,  on  the  eminence  above  the  horses,  several  In- 
dians were  looking  down  towards  the  river,  proba- 
bly at  Drewyer.  This  was  a  most  unwelcome  sight. 
Their  probable  numbers  rendered  any  contest  with 
them  of  doubtful  issue.  To  attempt  to  escape  would 
only  invite  pursuit;  and  our  horses  were  so  bad,  that 
we  must  certainly  be  overtaken  :  besides  which, 
Drewyer  could  not  yet  be  aware  that  Indians  were 
near;  and,  if  we  ran,  he  would  most  probably  be  sacri- 
ficed. We  therefore  determined  to  make  the  best  of 
our  situation,  and  advance  towards  them  in  a  friendly 
manner.  The  flag  which  we  had  brought  in  case  of 
such  an  emergency  was  therefore  displayed,  and  we 
continued  slowly  our  march  towards  them.  Their 
whole  attention  was  so  engaged  by  Drewyer,  that  they 
did  not  immediately  discover  us.  As  soon  as  they  did 
so,  they  appeared  to  be  much  alarmed,  and  ran  about 
in  confusion.  When  we  came  within  a  quarter  of  a 
mile,  one  of  the  Indians  mounted,  and  rode  towards 
us.  When  within  a  hundred  paces  of  us,  he  halted  ; 
and  Capt.  Lewis,  who  had  alighted  to  receive  him, 
held  out  his  hand,  and  beckoned  him  to  approach : 
but  he  only  looked  at  us,  and  then,  without  saying  a 
word,  returned  to  his  companions. 


CONFLICT  WITH  THE  INDIANS.  237 

The  whole  party  now  descended  the  hill,  and  rode 
towards  us.  As  yet  we  saw  only  eight,  but  presumed 
that  there  must  be  more  behind,  as  there  were  sev- 
eral more  horses  saddled.  Capt.  Lewis  had  with  him 
but  two  men ;  and  he  told  them  his  fears  that  these 
were  Indians  of  the  Minnetaree  tribe,  and  that  they 
would  attempt  to  rob  us,  and  advised  them  to  be 
on  the  alert,  should  there  appear  any  disposition  to 
attack  us. 

When  the  two  parties  came  within  a  hundred  yards 
of  each  other,  all  the  Indians,  except  one,  halted. 
Capt.  Lewis  therefore  ordered  his  two  men  to  halt, 
while  he  advanced,  and,  after  shaking  hands  with  the 
Indian,  went  on  and  did  the  same  with  the  others  in 
the  rear,  while  the  Indian  himself  shook  hands  with  our 
two  men.  They  all  now  came  up;  and,  after  alighting, 
the  Indians  asked  to  smoke  with  us.  Capt.  Lewis,  who 
was  very  anxious  for  Drewyer's  safety,  told  them  that 
the  man  who  had  gone  down  the  river  had  the  pipe, 
and  requested,  that,  as  they  had  seen  him,  one  of 
them  would  accompany  R.  Fields  to  bring  him  back. 
To  this  they  assented ;  and  Fields  went  with  a  young 
man  in  search  of  Drewyer,  who  returned  with  them. 

As  it  was  growing  late,  Capt.  Lewis  proposed  that 
they  should  encamp  with  us ;  for  he  was  glad  to  see 


238  OREGON. 

them,  and  had  a  great  deal  to  say  to  them.  They 
assented ;  and,  being  soon  joined  by  Drewyer,  the 
evening  was  spent  in  conversation  with  the  Indians, 
in  which  Capt.  Lewis  endeavored  to  persuade  them 
to  cultivate  peace  with  their  neighbors.  Finding 
them  very  fond  of  the  pipe,  Capt.  Lewis,  who  was 
desirous  of  keeping  a  constant  watch  during  the 
night,  smoked  with  them  to  a  late  hour ;  and,  as  soon  as 
they  were  all  asleep,  he  woke  R.  Fields,  and  ordering 
him  to  rouse  us  all  in  case  any  Indian  left  the  camp, 
as  he  feared  they  would  attempt  to  steal  our  horses, 
he  lay  down  by  the  side  of  Drewyer  in  the  tent 
with  the  Indians,  while  the  brothers  Fields  were 
stretched  near  the  fire  at  the  mouth  of  the  tent. 

At  sunrise,  the  Indians  got  up,  and  crowded  round 
the  fire,  near  which  J.  Fields,  who  was  then  on 
watch,  had  carelessly  left  his  rifle,  near  the  head  of 
his  brother,  who  was  asleep.  One  of  the  Indians 
slipped  behind  him,  and,  unperceived,  took  his  broth- 
er's and  his  own  rifle ;  while  at  the  same  time  two 
others  seized  those  of  Drewyer  and  Capt.  Lewis.  As 
soon  as  Fields  turned  round,  he  saw  the  Indian  run- 
ning off  with  the  rifles  ;  and,  instantly  calling  his 
brother,  they  pursued  him  for  fifty  or  sixty  yards; 
and  just  as  they  overtook  him,  in  the  scuffle  for  the 


CONFLICT  WITH  THE  INDIANS.  239 

rifles,  R.  Fields  stabbed  him  through  the  heart  with 
his  knife.  The  Indian  ran  a  few  steps,  and  fell  dead. 
They  recovered  their  rifles,  and  ran  back  to  the  camp. 

The  moment  the  fellow  touched  his  gun,  Drewyer, 
who  was  awake,  jumped  up,  and  wrested  it  from  him. 
The  noise  awoke  Capt.  Lewis,  who  instantly  started 
from  the  ground,  and  reached  to  seize  his  gun,  but 
found  it  gone,  and,  turning  about,  saw  the  Indian 
running  off  with  it.  He  followed,  and  called  to  him 
to  lay  down  the  gun ;  which  he  did.  By  this  time, 
the  rest  of  the  Indians  were  endeavoring  to  drive  off 
our  horses ;  and  Capt.  Lewis  ordered  his  men  to  fol- 
low them,  and  ire  upon  the  thieves  if  they  did  not 
release  our  horses.  The  result  was,  that  we  recov- 
ered four  of  our  horses,  and  as  many  of  theirs  which 
they  had  left  behind ;  so  that  we  were  rather  gainers 
by  the  contest.  Besides  the  Indian  killed  by  Fields, 
one  other  was  badly  wounded. 

We  had  no  doubt  but  that  we  should  be  imme- 
diately pursued  by  a  much  larger  party.  Our  only 
chance  of  safety  was  in  rejoining  our  friends,  who 
were  many  miles  distant.  We  therefore  pushed 
our  horses  as  fast  as  we  could ;  and,  fortunately 
for  us,  the  Indian  horses  proved  very  good.  The 
plains  were  level,  free  from  stones  and  prickly- 


240  OREGON. 

pears,  and  in  fine  order  for  travelling  over  from  the 
late  rains.  We  commenced  our  ride  in  the  early 
morning.  At  three  o'clock,  we  had  ridden,  by  esti- 
mate, sixty-three  miles.  We  halted  for  an  hour  and  a 
half  to  refresh  our  horses ;  then  pursued  our  journey 
seventeen  miles  farther,  when,  as  night  came  on,  we 
killed  a  buffalo,  and  again  stopped  for  two  hours. 
The  sky  was  now  overclouded ;  but,  as  the  moon 
gave  light  enough  to  show  us  the  route,  we  contin- 
ued for  twenty  miles  farther,  and  then,  exhausted 
with  fatigue,  halted  at  two  in  the  morning.  Next  day, 
we  rejoined  the  main  body  of  our  party  in  safety. 

Capt.  Lewis  with  his  companions  ^.pursued  their 
way  down  the  Missouri,  passing  those  points  already 
noticed  in  their  ascent.  Our  narrative,  therefore, 
will  leave  them  here,  and  attend  the  course  of  Capt. 
Clarke  and  his  party  down  the  Yellowstone. 


CHAPTER    XVIII. 

CAPT.  CLARKE'S  ROUTE  DOWN  THE  YELLOWSTONE. 

TULY  3,  1806.  — The  party  under  Capt.  Clarke, 
consisting  of  fifteen  men,  with  fifty  horses,  set 
out  through  the  valley  of  Clarke's  River,  along  the 
western  side  of  which  they  rode  in  a  southern  direc- 
tion. The  valley  is  from  ten  to  fifteen  miles  in  width, 
and  is  diversified  by  a  number  of  small  open  plains, 
abounding  with  grass  and  a  variety  of  sweet-scented 
plants,  and  watered  by  numerous  streams  rushing 
from  the  western  mountains.  These  mountains  were 
covered  with  snow  about  one-fifth  of  the  way  from 
the  top ;  and  some  snow  was  still  to  be  seen  in  the 
hollows  of  the  mountains  to  the  eastward. 

July  7.  —  They  reached  Wisdom  River,  and  stopped 
for  dinner  at  a  hot  spring  situated  in  the  open  plain. 
The  bed  of  the  spring  is  about  fifteen  yards  in  cir- 
cumference, and  composed  of  loose,  hard,  gritty 
stones,  through  which  the  water  boils  in  large  quan- 

16  241 


242  OREGON. 

tities.  It  is  slightly  impregnated  with  sulphur,  arid 
so  hot,  that  a  piece  of  meat,  about  the  size  of  three  fin- 
gers, was  completely  cooked  in  twenty-five  minutes. 

July  8.  —  They  arrived  at  Jefferson's  Kiver,  where 
they  had  deposited  their  goods  in  the  month  of  Au- 
gust the  year  before.  They  found  every  thing  safe, 
though  some  of  the  goods  were  a  little  damp,  and 
one  of  the  canoes  had  a  hole  in  it.  They  had  now 
crossed  from  Traveller's-Rest  Creek  to  the  head  of  Jef- 
ferson's River,  which  seems  to  form  the  best  and  short- 
est route  over  the  mountains  during  almost  the  whole 
distance  of  one  hundred  and  sixty-four  miles.  It  is, 
in  fact,  an  excellent  road ;  and,  by  cutting  down  a  few 
trees,  it  might  be  rendered  a  good  route  for  wagons, 
with  the  exception  of  about  four  miles  over  one  of 
the  mountains,  which  would  require  a  little  levelling. 

July  10.  —  The  boats  were  now  loaded,  and  Capt. 
Clarke  divided  his  men  into  two  bands.  Sergt.  Ord- 
way,  with  nine  men,  in  six  canoes,  was  to  descend 
the  river;  while  Capt.  Clarke,  with  the  remaining 
ten,  the  wife  and  child  of  Chaboneau,  and  fifty  horses, 
were  to  proceed  by  land  to  the  Yellowstone.  The 
latter  party  set  out  at  five  in  the  afternoon  from 
the  forks  of  the  Missouri,  in  a  direction  nearly  east. 
The  plain  was  intersected  by  several  great  roads 


CLARKE'S  ROUTE  DOWN  THE   YELLOWSTONE.    243 

leading  to  a  gap  in  the  mountain  about  twenty  miles 
distant,  in  a  direction  east-north-east ;  but  the  Indian 
woman,  who  was  acquainted  with  the  country,  recom- 
mended another  gap  more  to  the  south,  through  which 
Capt.  Clarke  determined  to  proceed. 

They  started  early  the  next  morning,  and,  pursuing 
the  route  recommended  by  the  squaw,  encamped  in 
the  evening  at  the  entrance  of  the  gap  mentioned  by 
her.  Through  this  gap  they  passed  next  day,  and, 
at  the  distance  of  six  miles,  reached  the  top  of  the 
dividing  ridge  which  separates  the  waters  of  the  Mis- 
souri from  those  of  the  Yellowstone.  Nine  miles 
from  the  summit,  they  reached  the  Yellowstone  itself, 
about  a  mile  and  a  half  below  where  it  issues  from 
the  Rocky  Mountains.  The  distance  from  the  head 
of  the  Missouri  to  this  place  is  forty-eight  miles,  the 
greater  part  of  which  is  through  a  level  plain.  They 
halted  for  three  hours  to  rest  their  horses,  and  then 
pursued  the  Buffalo  Road  along  the  banks  of  the 
river. 

Although  but  just  emerging  from  a  high,  snowy 
mountain,  the  Yellowstone  is  here  a  bold,  rapid,  and 
deep  stream,  one  hundred  and  twenty  yards  in  width. 
They  continued  their  course  along  the  river  till  the 
23d,  when  the  party  embarked  on  board  of  two  ca- 


244  OREGON. 

noes,  each  of  which  was  twenty-eight  feet  long,  six- 
teen or  eighteen  inches  deep,  and  from  sixteen  to 
twenty-four  inches  wide.  Sergt.  Prior,  with  two  men, 
was  directed  to  take  the  horses  to  the  Mandans  for 
safe  keeping  until  the  re-union  of  the  expedition. 

July  24.  —  At  eight  o'clock,  Capt.  Clarke  and  the 
remainder  of  his  party  embarked,  and  proceeded  very 
steadily  down  the  river.  They  passed  the  mouths  of 
several  large  rivers  emptying  into  the  Yellowstone ; 
one  of  which  was  called  the  Big-horn,  from  the  num- 
bers of  that  remarkable  species  of  sheep  seen  in  its 
neighborhood.  Next  day,  Capt.  Clarke  landed  to  ex- 
amine a  curious  rock,  situated  in  an  extensive  bottom 
on  the  right,  about  two  hundred  and  fifty  paces  from 
the  shore.  It  is  nearly  two  hundred  paces  in  circumfer- 
ence, two  hundred  feet  high,  and  accessible  only  from 
the  rjprth-east ;  the  other  sides  consisting  of  perpen- 
dicular cliffs,  of  a  light-colored,  gritty  stone.  The 
soil  on  the  summit  is  five  or  six  feet  deep,  of  a  good 
quality,  and  covered  with  short  grass.  From  this 
height,  the  eye  ranges  over  a  wide  extent  of  varie- 
gated country.  On  the  south-west  are  the  Rocky 
Mountains,  covered  with  snow ;  on  the  north,  a  lower 
range,  called  the  Little  Wolf  Mountains.  The  low 
grounds  of  the  river  extend  nearly  six  miles  to  the 


BEAVERS,  BUFFALOES,  MOSQUITOES.  245 

southward,  when  they  rise  into  plains,  reaching  to 
the  mountains.  The  north  side  of  the  river  is  bound- 
ed by  jutting,  romantic  cliffs,  beyond  which  the  plains 
are  open  and  extensive,  and  the  whole  country  enli- 
vened by  herds  of  buffaloes,  elks,  and  wolves.  After 
enjoying  the  prospect  from  this  rock,  to  which  Capt. 
Clarke  gave  the  name  of  Pompey's  Pillar,  he  de- 
scended, and  continued  his  route.  At  the  distance 
of  six  or  seven  miles,  he  stopped  to  secure  two  big- 
horns, which  had  been  shot  from  the  boat,  and,  while 
on  shore,  saw  in  the  face  of  the  cliff,  about  twenty 
feet  above  the  water,  a  fragment  of  the  rib  of  a  fish, 
three  feet  long,  and  nearly  three  inches  round,  em- 
bedded in  the  rock  itself. 

BEAVERS,   BUFFALOES,  MOSQUITOES. 

The  beavers  were  in  great  numbers  along  the 
banks  of  the  river,  and  through  the  night  were  flap- 
ping their  tails  in  the  water  round  the  boats. 

Aug.  1.  —  The  buffaloes  appeared  in  vast  numbers. 
A  herd  happened  to  be  on  their  way  across  the  river. 
Such  was  the  multitude  of  these  animals,  that  al- 
though the  river,  including  an  island  over  which 
they  passed,  was  a  mile  in  width,  the  herd  stretched, 
as  thick  as  they  could  swim,  completely  from  one 


246  OREGON. 

side  to  the  other.  Our  party,  descending  the  river, 
was  obliged  to  stop  for  an  hour  to  let  the  procession 
pass.  We  consoled  ourselves  for  the  delay  by  killing 
four  of  the  herd,  and  then  proceeded,  till,  at  the  dis- 
tance of  forty-five  miles,  two  other  herds  of  buffaloes, 
as  numerous  as  the  first,  crossed  the  river  in  like 
manner. 

Aug.  4.  —  The  camp  became  absolutely  uninhabita- 
ble, in  consequence  of  the  multitude  of  mosquitoes. 
The  men  could  not  work  in  preparing  skins  for  cloth- 
ing, nor  hunt  in  the  low  grounds  :  in  short,  there  was 
no  mode  of  escape,  except  by  going  on  the  sand-bars 
in  the  river,  where,  if  the  wind  should  blow,  the 
insects  do  not  venture.  But  when  there  is  no  wind, 
and  particularly  at  night,  when  the  men  have  no  cov- 
ering except  their  worn-out  blankets,  the  pain  they 
inflict  is  scarcely  to  be  endured. 

On  one  occasion,  Capt.  Clarke  went  on  shore,  and 
ascended  a  hill  after  one  of  the  big-horns ;  but  the 
mosquitoes  were  in  such  multitudes,  that  he  could  not 
keep  them  from  the  barrel  of  his  rifle  long  enough  to 
take  aim. 

This  annoyance  continued,  till,  on  the  llth  of  Sep- 
tember, they  write,  "  We  are  no  longer  troubled  with 
mosquitoes,  which  do  not  seem  to  frequent  this  part 


PARTING   WITH  COMPANIONS.  247 

of  the  river ;  and,  after  having  been  persecuted  with 
them  during  the  whole  route  from  the  falls,  it  is  a 
most  happy  exemption.  Their  noise  was  very  agree- 
ably exchanged  for  that  of  the  wolves,  which  were 
howjing  in  various  directions  all  round  us. 

Aug.  12,  1806.  —  The  party  continued  to  descend 
the  river.  One  of  their  canoes  had,"  by  accident,  a 
small  hole  made  in  it ;  and  they  halted  for  the  purpose 
of  covering  it  with  a  piece  of  elk-skin.  While  there, 
about  noon,  they  were  overjoyed  at  seeing  the  boats 
of  Capt.  Lewis's  party  heave  in  sight.  The  whole 
expedition  being  now  happily  re-united,  at  about 
three  o'clock  all  embarked  on  board  the  boats;  but 
as  the  wind  was  high,  accompanied  with  rain,  we  did 
not  proceed  far  before  we  halted  for  the  night. 

THEY  PART  WITH  SOME  OP  THEIR   COMPANIONS. 

On  the  14th  August,  having  now  reached  a  part  of 
the  river  where  we  occasionally  met  the  boats  of  ad- 
venturous traders  ascending  the  river,  Capt.  Lewis 
was  applied  to  by  one  of  the  men,  Colter,  who  was 
desirous  of  joining  two  trappers,  who  proposed  to 
him  to  accompany  them,  and  share  their  profits.  The 
offer  was  an  advantageous  one ;  and  as  he  had  always 
performed  his  duty,  and  his  services  might  be  dis- 


248  OREGON. 

pensed  with,  Capt.  Lewis  consented  to  his  going,  pro- 
vided none  of  the  rest  would  ask  or  expect  a  similar 
indulgence.  To  this  they  cheerfully  answered,  that 
they  wished  Colter  every  success,  and  would  not 
apply  for  a  discharge  before  we  reached  St.  Louis. 
We  therefore  supplied  him,  as  did  his  comrades  also, 
with  powder  and  lead,  and  a  variety  of  articles  which 
might  be  useful  to  him ;  and  he  left  us  the  next  day. 

The  example  of  this  man  shows  how  easily  men 
may  be  weaned  from  the  habits  of  civilized  life,  and 
brought  to  relish  the  manners  of  the  woods.  This 
hunter  had  now  been  absent  many  years  from  his 
country,  and  might  naturally  be  presumed  to  have 
some  desire  to  return  to  his  native  seats  ;  yet,  just  at 
the  moment  when  he  is  approaching  the  frontiers,  he 
is  tempted  by  a  hunting-scheme  to  go  back  to  the 
solitude  of  the  woods. 

A  few  days  after  this,  Chaboneau,  with  his  wife 
and  child,  concluded  to  follow  us  no  longer,  as  he 
could  be  no  longer  useful  to  us.  We  offered  to  take 
him  with  us  to  the  United  States ;  but  he  said  that  he 
had  there  no  acquaintance,  and  preferred  remaining 
among  the  Indians.  This  man  has  been  very  ser- 
viceable to  us,  and  his  wife  particularly  so,  among 
the  Shoshonees.  She  has  borne  with  a  patience  truly 


THEY  REACH  HOME.  249 

admirable  the  fatigues  of  our  long  journey,  encum- 
bered with  the  charge  of  an  infant,  which  is  now 
only  nineteen  months  old.  We  paid  him  his  wages, 
amounting  to  five  hundred  dollars  and  thirty-three 
cents,  including  the  price  of  a  horse  and  a  lodge  pur- 
chased of  him,  and  pursued  our  journey  without  him. 

THEY   REACH   HOME. 

Sept.  8,  1806. —  We  reached  Council  Bluffs,  and 
stopped  for  a  short  time  to  examine  the  situation  of 
the  place,  and  were  confirmed  in  our  belief  that  it 
would  be  a  very  eligible  spot  for  a  trading  establish- 
ment.* Being  anxious  to  reach  the  junction  of  the 
Platte  River,  we  plied  our  oars  so  well,  that  by  night 
we  had  made  seventy-eight  miles,  and  landed  at  our 
old  encampment,  on  the  ascent,  twelve  miles  above 
that  river.  We  had  here  occasion  to  remark  the 
wonderful  evaporation  from  the  Missouri.  The  river 
does  not  appear  to  contain  more  water,  nor  is  its 
channel  wider,  than  at  the  distance  of  one  thousand 
miles  nearer  its  source,  although  within  that  space 
it  receives  about  twenty  rivers  (some  of  them  of 
considerable  width),  and  a  great  number  of  smaller 
streams. 

*  Now  the  site  of  Omaha  City. 


250  OREGON. 

A  few  days  more  brought  us  to  the  mouth  of  the 
Kansas  River.  About  a  mile  below  it,  we  landed  to 
view  the  country.  The  low  grounds  are  delightful, 
the  whole  country  exhibiting  a  rich  appearance ;  but 
the  weather  was  oppressively  warm.  Descending  as 
we  had  done  from  a  high,  open  country,  between  the 
latitudes  of  forty-six  and  forty-nine  degrees,  to  the 
wooded  plains  in  thirty-eight  and  thirty-nine  degrees, 
the  heat  would  have  been  intolerable,  had  it  not  been 
for  the  constant  winds  from  the  south  and  the  south- 
west. 

On  the  20th  September,  we  reached  the  mouth  of 
Osage  River.  A  few  miles  lower  down,  we  saw  on 
the  banks  some  cows  feeding;  and  the  whole  party 
involuntarily  raised  a  shout  of  joy  at  the  sight  of  this 
evidence  of  civilization  and  domestic  life. 

We  soon  after  reached  the  little  French  village  of 
La  Charette,  which  we  saluted  with  a  discharge  of 
four  guns  and  three  hearty  cheers.  We  landed,  and 
were  received  with  kindness  by  the  inhabitants,  as 
well  as  by  some  traders  who  were  on  their  way  to 
traffic  with  the  Osages.  They  were  all  surprised  and 
pleased  at  our  arrival ;  for  they  had  long  since  aban- 
doned all  hopes  of  ever  seeing  us  return. 

The  third  day  after  this,  —  viz.,  on  Tuesday,  the  23d 


CONCLUSION.  251 

of  September,  1806,  —  we  arrived  at  St.  Louis,  and, 
having  fired  a  salute,  went  on  shore,  and  received 
the  heartiest  and  most  hospitable  welcome  from  the 
whole  village. 

CONCLUSION. 

The  successful  termination  of  the  expedition  was  a 
source  of  surprise  and  delight  to  the  whole  country. 
The  humblest  of  its  citizens  had  taken  a  lively  inter- 
est in  the  issue  of  this  journey,  and  looked  forward 
with  impatience  for  the  information  it  would  furnish. 
Their  anxieties,  too,  for  the  safety  of  the  party,  had 
been  kept  in  a  state  of  excitement  by  lugubrious 
rumors,  circulated  from  time  to  time  on  uncertain 
authorities,  and  uncontradicted  by  letters  or  other 
direct  information,  from  the  time  when  the  party  left 
the  Mandan  towns,  on  their  ascent  up  the  river,  in 
1804,  until  their  actual  return  to  St.  Louis. 

The  courage,  perseverance,  and  discretion  dis- 
played by  the  commanders,  and  the  fidelity  and 
obedience  of  the  men,  were  the  theme  of  general 
approbation,  and  received  the  favorable  notice  of 
Government.  A  donation  of  lands  was  made  to  each 
member  of  the  party;  Capt.  Lewis  was  appointed 
Governor  of  Louisiana,  which,  at  that  time,  embraced 


252  OREGON. 

the  whole  country  west  of  the  Mississippi,  within  the 
boundaries  of  the  United  States ;  and  Capt.  Clarke 
was  made  Superintendent  of  Indian  Affairs. 

It  was  not  until  some  years  after,  however,  that 
the  world  was  put  in  possession  of  the  detailed  his- 
tory of  the  expedition.  Capt.  Lewis,  in  the  midst  of 
other  cares,  devoted  what  time  he  could  to  the  prepa- 
ration of  his  journals  for  publication,  and,  in  1809,  was 
on  his  way  to  Philadelphia  for  that  purpose,  but,  at 
a  village  in  Tennessee,  was  taken  ill,  and  prevented 
from  proceeding.  Here  the  energetic  mind,  which 
had  encountered  so  unfalteringly  the  perils  and  suf- 
ferings of  the  desert,  gave  way.  Constitutional  de- 
spondency overcame  him :  it  is  probable  he  lost  his 
reason ;  for,  in  a  rash  moment,  he  applied  a  pistol  to 
his  head,  and  destroyed  his  life.  His  journals  were 
published  under  the  charge  of  Paul  Allen  of  Phila- 
delphia. 


ELDORADO. 


ELDORADO. 


CHAPTER    I. 

THE  DISCOVERY. 

TTTHAT  is  meant  by  Eldorado  ?  Is  there  such  a 
country  ?  and,  if  there  be,  where  is  it  ?  The 
name  literally  means  "  The  Golden  Country,"  and 
was  given  to  an  unknown  region  in  South  America 
by  the  Spaniards,  who  had  heard  from  the  Indians 
marvellous  tales  of  such  a  land  lying  in  the  interior 
of  the  continent,  where  gold  and  precious  stones 
were  as  common  as  rocks  and  pebbles  in  other  coun- 
tries, and  to  be  had  for  the  trouble  of  picking  them 
up.  It  was  also  a  land  of  spices  and  aromatic  gums. 
The  first  notion  of  this  favored  region  was  communi- 
cated by  an  Indian  chief  to  Gonzalo  Pizarro,  brother 
of  the  conqueror  of  Peru,  whose  imagination  was  cap- 
tivated by  the  account,  and  his  ambition  fired  with  a 
desire  to  add  this,  which  promised  to  be  the  most  bril- 

255 


256  ELDORADO. 

liant  of  all,  to  the  discoveries  and  conquests  of  his 
countrymen.  He  found  no  difficulty  in  awakening  a 
kindred  enthusiasm  in  the  bosoms  of  his  followers. 
In  a  short  time,  he  mustered  three  hundred  and  fifty 
Spaniards,  and  four  thousand  Indians.  One  hundred 
and  fifty  of  his  company  were  mounted.  The  Indians 
were  to  carry  the  baggage  and  provisions,  and  per- 
form the  labors  of  the. expedition. 

A  glance  at  the  map  of  South  America  will  give 
us  a  clear  idea  of  the  scene  of  the  expedition.  The 
River  Amazon,  the  largest  river  of  the  globe,  rises  in 
the  highest  ranges  of  the  Andes,  and  flows  from  west 
to  east  through  nearly  the  whole  breadth  of  the  conti- 
nent. Pizarro's  expedition  started  in  the  year  1540 
from  Quito,  near  the  sources  of  the  great  river,  and, 
marching  east,  soon  became  entangled  in  the  deep 
and  intricate  passes  of  the  mountains.  As  they  rose 
into  the  more  elevated  regions,  the  icy  winds  that 
swept  down  the  sides  of  the  Cordilleras  benumbed 
their  limbs,  and  many  of  the  natives  found  a  wintry 
grave  in  the  wilderness.  On  descending  the  eastern 
slope,  the  climate  changed ;  and,  as  they  came  to  a 
lower  level,  the  fierce  cold  was  succeeded  by  a  suffo- 
cating heat,  while  tempests  of  thunder  and  lightning 
poured  on  them  with  scarcely  any  intermission  day 


THE  DISCOVERY.  257 

or  night.  For  more  than  six  weeks,  the  deluge  con- 
tinued unabated ;  and  the  forlorn  wanderers,  wet,  and 
weary  with  incessant  toil,  were  scarcely  able  to  drag 
their  limbs  along  the  soil,  broken  up  as  it  was,  and 
saturated  with  the  moisture.  After  months  of  toil- 
some travel,  they  reached  the  region  where  grew  the 
spice-trees.  Their  produce  resembled  the  cinnamon 
of  the  East  in  taste,  but  was  of  inferior  quality.  They 
saw  the  trees  bearing  the  precious  bark  spreading  out 
into  broad  forests ;  yet,  however  valuable  it  might  be 
for  future  commerce,  it  was  of  but  little  worth  to  them. 
But,  from  the  savages  whom  they  occasionally  met, 
they  learned,  that  at  ten  days'  distance  was  a  rich 
and  fruitful  land,  abounding  with  gold,  and  inhabited 
by  populous  nations.  The  Spaniards  were  so  con- 
vinced of  the  existence  of  such  a  country,  that  if  the 
natives,  on  being  questioned,  professed  their  igno- 
rance of  it,  they  were  supposed  to  be  desirous  of 
concealing  the  fact,  and  were  put  to  the  most  horri- 
ble tortures,  and  even  burnt  alive,  to  compel  them  to 
confess.  It  is  no  wonder,  therefore,  if  they  told,  in 
many  instances,  such  stories  as  the  Spaniards  wished 
to  hear,  which  would  also  have  the  effect  of  ridding 
their  own  territories  of  their  troublesome  guests  by 
inducing  them  to  advance  farther.  Pizarro  had  al- 

17 


258  ELDORADO. 

ready  reached  the  limit  originally  proposed  for  the 
expedition ;  but  these  accounts  induced  him  to  con- 
tinue on. 

As  they  advanced,  the  country  spread  out  into 
broad  plains,  terminated  by  forests,  which  seemed  to 
stretch  on  every  side  as  far  as  the  eye  could  reach. 
The  wood  was  thickly  matted  with  creepers  and 
climbing  plants,  and  at  every  step  of  the  way  they 
had  to  hew  open  a  passage  with  their  axes;  while 
their  garments,  rotting  from  the  effects  of  the  drench- 
ing rains,  caught  in  every  bush,  and  hung  about  them 
in  shreds.  Their  provisions  failed,  and  they  had  only 
for  sustenance  such  herbs  and  roots  as  they  could 
gather  in  the  forest,  and  such  wild  animals  as,  with 
their  inadequate  means,  they  could  capture. 

At  length  they  came  to  a  broad  expanse  of  water, 
from  whence  flowed  a  stream,  —  one  of  those  which 
discharge  their  waters  into  the  great  River  Amazon. 
The  sight  gladdened  their  hearts,  as  they  hoped  to 
find  a  safer  and  more  practicable  route  by  keeping 
along  its  banks.  After  following  the  stream  a  con- 
siderable distance,  the  party  came  within  hearing  of 
a  rushing  noise,  that  seemed  like  thunder  issuing 
from  the  bowels  of  the  earth.  The  river  tumbled 
along  over  rapids  with  frightful  velocity,  and  then 


THE  DISCOVERY.  259 

discharged  itself  in  a  magnificent  cataract,  which 
they  describe  as  twelve  hundred  feet  high.  Doubt- 
less this  estimate  must  be  taken  with  some  allowance 
for  the  excited  feelings  of  the  Spaniards,  keenly  alive 
to  impressions  of  the  sublime  and  the  terrible. 

For  some  distance  above  and  below  the  falls,  the 
bed  of  the  river  contracted ;  so  that  its  width  did  not 
exceed  twenty  feet.  They  determined  to  cross,  in 
hopes  of  finding  a  country  that  might  afford  them 
better  sustenance.  A  frail  bridge  was  constructed 
by  throwing  trunks  of  trees  across  the  chasm,  where 
the  cliffs,  as  if  split  asunder  by  some  convulsion  of 
Nature,  descended  sheer  down  a  perpendicular  depth 
of  several  hundred  feet.  Over  this  airy  causeway, 
the  men  and  horses  succeeded  in  effecting  their  pas- 
sage ;  though  one  Spaniard,  made  giddy  by  heedlessly 
looking  down,  lost  his  footing,  and  fell  into  the  boiling 
surges  below.  They  gained  little  by  the  exchange. 
The  country  wore  the  same  unpromising  aspect :  the 
Indians  whom  they  occasionally  met  in  the  pathless 
wilderness  were  fierce  and  unfriendly,  and  the  Span- 
iards were  engaged  in  perpetual  conflict  with  them. 
From  these  they  learned  that  a  fruitful  country  was 
to  be  found  down  the  river,  at  the  distance  of  only  a 
few  days'  journey ;  and  the  Spaniards  held  on  their 


260  ELDORADO. 

weary  way,  still  hoping,  and  still  deceived,  as  the 
promised  land  flitted  before  them,  like  the  rainbow, 
receding  as  they  advanced. 

At  length,  spent  with  toil  and  suffering,  Pizarro 
resolved  to  construct  a  bark  large  enough  to  trans- 
port the  weaker  part  of  his  company  and  his  bag- 
gage. The  forests  furnished  him  with  timber;  the 
shoes  of  the  horses,  which  had  died  on  the  road,  or 
been  slaughtered  for  food,  were  converted  into  nails ; 
gum,  distilled  from  the  trees,  took  the  place  of  pitch ; 
and  the  tattered  garments  of  the  soldiers  served  for 
oakum.  At  the  end  of  two  months,  the  vessel  was 
ready,  and  the  command  given  to  Francisco  Orellana. 
The  troops  now  moved  forward  through  the  wilder- 
ness, following  the  course  of  the  river;  the  vessel 
carrying  the  feebler  soldiers.  Every  scrap  of  pro- 
visions had  long  since  been  consumed.  The  last  of 
their  horses  had  been  devoured ;  and  they  greedily 
fed  upon  toads,  serpents,  and  even  insects,  which  that 
country,  teeming  with  the  lower  forms  of  animal  life, 
abundantly  supplied. 

The  natives  still  told  of  a  rich  district,  inhabited  by 
a  populous  nation.  It  was,  as  usual,  at  the  distance  of 
several  days'  journey;  and  Pizarro  resolved  to  halt 
where  he  was,  and  send  Orellana  down  in  his  brigaii- 


THE  DISCOVERY.  261 

tine  to  procure  a  stock  of  provisions,  with  which  he 
might  return,  and  put  the  main  body  in  condition  to 
resume  their  march.  Orellana,  with  fifty  of  the  ad- 
venturers, pushed  off  into  the  middle  of  the  river, 
where  the  stream  ran  swiftly;  and  his  bark,  taken 
by  the  current,  shot  forward  as  with  the  speed  of  an 
arrow,  and  was  soon  out  of  sight. 

Days  and  weeks  passed  away,  yet  the  vessel  did 
not  return;  and  no  speck  was  to  be  seen  on  the 
waters  as  the  Spaniards  strained  their  eyes  to  the 
farthest  point,  till  the  banks  closed  in,  and  shut 
the  view.  Detachments  were  sent  out,  and,  though 
absent  several  days,  came  back  without  intelligence 
of  their  comrades.  Weary  of  suspense,  Pizarro  de- 
termined to  continue  their  march  down  the  river, 
which  they  did,  with  incredible  suffering,  for  two 
months  longer,  till  their  doubts  were  dispelled  by 
the  appearance  of  a  white  man,  wandering,  half  naked, 
in  the  woods,  in  whose  famine-stricken  countenance 
they  recognized  the  features  of  one  of  their  country- 
men. Orellana  had  passed  swiftly  down  the  river  to 
the  point  of  its  confluence  with  the  Amazon,  where 
he  had  been  led  to  expect  that  he  should  find  sup- 
plies for  the  wants  of  himself  and  his  companions, 
but  found  none.  Nor  was  it  possible  to  return  as  he 


262  ELDORADO. 

had  come,  and  make  head  against  the  current  of  the 
river.  In  this  dilemma,  a  thought  flashed  across  his 
mind :  it  was,  to  leave  the  party  under  Pizarro  to 
their  fate,  and  to  pursue  his  course  down  the  great 
river  on  which  he  had  entered ;  to  explore  Eldorado 
for  himself,  and  make  the  best  of  his  way  home  to 
Spain  to  claim  the  glory  and  reward  of  discovery. 
His  reckless  companions  readily  consented  to  this 
course,  with  the  exception  of  the  individual  whom 
Pizarro  found ;  and  him,  when  he  remonstrated,  they 
put  ashore,  and  left  to  shift  for  himself. 

Pizarro  and  his  party,  deserted  in  the  wilderness, 
unable  to  advance  farther,  had  no  alternative  but  to 
remain,  or  retrace  their  miserable  way  to  Quito,  the 
place  they  had  started  from  more  than  a  year  before. 
They  chose  the  latter,  and  commenced  their  return 
march  with  heavy  hearts.  They  took  a  more  north- 
erly route  than  that  by  which  they  had  approached 
the  Amazon ;  and,  though  it  was  attended  with  fewer 
difficulties,  they  experienced  yet  greater  distresses, 
from  their  greater  inability  to  overcome  them.  Their 
only  food  was  such  scanty  fare  as  they  could  pick  up 
in  the  forest,  or  happily  meet  with  in  some  forsaken 
Indian  settlement,  or  wring  by  violence  from  the 
natives.  Some  sickened  and  sank  down  by  the  way, 


THE  DISCOVERY.  263 

and  perished  where  they  fell ;  for  there  was  none  to 
help  them.  Intense  misery  had  made  them  selfish ; 
and  many  a  poor  wretch  was  abandoned  to  his  fate,  to 
die  alone  in  the  wilderness,  or,  more  probably,  to  be 
devoured,  while  living,  by  the  wild  animals  which 
roamed  over  it. 

It  took  them  a  year  to  measure  back  their  way  to 
Quito ;  and  the  miseries  they  had  endured  were  testi- 
fied to  by  their  appearance  when  they  arrived,  in 
sadly  reduced  numbers,  at  the  place  of  their  starting. 
Their  horses  gone,  their  arms  broken  and  rusted,  the 
skins  of  wild  animals  their  only  clothes,  their  long 
and  matted  locks  streaming  wildly  down  their  shoul- 
ders, their  faces  blackened  by  the  tropical  sun,  their 
bodies  wasted  by  famine  and  disfigured  by  scars,  it 
seemed  as  if  the  charnel-house  had  given  up  its  dead, 
as,  with  unsteady  step,  they  crept  slowly  onwards. 
More  than  half  of  the  four  thousand  Indians  who  had 
accompanied  the  expedition  had  perished;  and  of  the 
Spaniards,  only  eighty,  and  many  of  these  irretrieva- 
bly broken  in  constitution,  found  their  way  back  to 
Quito. 

Meanwhile,  Orellana  glided  down  the  stream,  which 
then  was  nameless  and  unknown,  but  which  has  since 
been  called  by  his  name,  though  it  is  more  generally 


264  ELDORADO. 

known  by  a  name  derived  from  a  story  which  Orellana 
told,  in  his  account  of  his  voyage,  of  a  nation  of  Ama- 
zons inhabiting  its  banks.  But  an  account  of  Orel- 
lana's  adventures  must  be  reserved  for  our  next 
chapter. 


CHAPTER    II. 

OEELLANA  DESCENDS  TflE  RIVER. 

TTTHEN  Orellana,  in  his  ill-appointed  bark,  and 
with  his  crew  enfeebled  by  famine,  had 
reached  the  junction  of  the  River  Napo  with  the  Am- 
azon, and  found  no  sources  of  supply  which  he  had 
been  led  to  expect,  he  had  no  difficulty  in  satisfying 
his  companions  that  their  only  enhance  of  preservation 
was  in  continuing  their  descent  of  the  river,  and  leav- 
ing the  party  under"  Pizarro  to  their  fate.  He  then 
formally  renounced  the  commission  which  Pizarro  had 
given  him,  and  received  the  command  anew  from  the 
election  of  his  men,  that  so  he  might  make  discove- 
ries for  himself,  and  not,  holding  a  deputed  authority, 
in  the  name  of  another.  It  was  upon  the  last  day  of 
December,  1541,  that  this  voyage  was  begun,  — one  of 
the  most  adventurous  that  has  ever  been  undertaken. 
The  little  stock  of  provisions  with  which  they  had 
parted  from  the  army  was  already  exhausted,  and  they 

265 


266  ELDORADO. 

boiled  their  leathern  girdles  and  the  leather  of  their 
shoes  with  such  herbs  as  seemed  most  likely  to  be 
nourishing  and  harmless  ;  for  it  was  only  by  experi- 
ment that  they  were  able  to  distinguish  the  whole- 
some from  the  poisonous.  On  the  8th  of  January, 
being  reduced  almost  to  the  last  extremity  with  hun- 
ger, they  heard  before  daylight  an  Indian  drum, — 
a  joyful  sound ;  for  be  the  natives  what  they  would, 
friendly  or  hostile,  this  they  knew,  that  it  must  be 
their  own  fault  now  if  they  should  die  of  hunger.  At 
daybreak,  being  eagerly  upon  the  lookout,  they  per- 
ceived four  canoes,  which  put  back  upon  seeing  the 
brigantine ;  and  presently  they  saw  a  village  where 
a  great  body  of  the  natives  were  assembled,  and  ap- 
peared ready  to  defend  it.  The  Spaniards  were  too 
hungry  to  negotiate.  Orellana  bade  them  land  in 
good  order,  and  stand  by  each  other.  They  attacked 
the  Indians  like  men  who  were  famishing,  and  fought 
for  food,  put  them  speedily  to  the  rout,  and  found  an 
immediate  supply.  While  they  were  enjoying  the 
fruits  of  their  victory,  the  Indians  came  near  them, 
more  to  gratify^  curiosity  than  resentment.  Orellana 
spoke  to  them  in  some  Indian  language  which  they 
partly  understood.  Some  of  them  took  courage,  and 
approached  him.  He  gave  them  a  few  European 


ORELLANA  DESCENDS  THE  RIVER.  267 

trifles,  and  asked  for  their  chief,  who  came  without 
hesitation,  was  well  pleased  with  the  presents  which 
were  given  him,  and  offered  them  any  thing  which  it 
was  in  his  power  to  supply.  Provisions  were  re- 
quested ;  and  presently  peacocks,  partridges,  fish,  and 
other  things,  were  brought  in  great  abundance.  The 
next  day,  thirteen  chiefs  came  to  see  the  strangers. 
They  were  gayly  adorned  with  feathers  and  gold,  and 
had  plates  of  gold  upon  the  breast.  Orellana  received 
them  courteously,  required  them  to  acknowledge 
obedience  to  the  crown  of  Castile,  took  advantage  as 
usual  of  their  ignorance  to  affirm  that  they  consented, 
and  took  possession  of  their  country  in  the  emperor's 
name. 

Such  is  Orellana's  own  account  of  this  first  inter- 
view. It  was  his  object  to  create  a  high  idea  of  the 
riches  of  the  provinces  which  he  had  discovered.  It 
is  not  probable  that  these  tribes  had  any  gold ;  for 
later  discoveries  showed  that  none  of  the  tribes  on  the 
Amazon  were  so  far  advanced  as  to  use  it.  It  was 
here  that  they  heard  the  first  accounts  of  the  rich  and 
powerful  nation  composed  wholly  of  women,  whom, 
in  recollection  of  the  female  warriors  of  classic  anti- 
quity, they  called  the  Amazons.  Here  the  Spaniards 
built  a  better  brigantine  than  the  frail  one  in  which 


268  ELDORADO. 

they  were  embarked.  All  fell  to  work,  Orellana  being 
the  first  at  any  exertion  that  was  required.  They 
calked  it  with  cotton;  the  natives  supplied  pitch; 
and  in  thirty-five  days  the  vessel  was  launched.  On 
the  24th  of  April,  they  once  more  embarked.  For 
eighty  leagues,  the  banks  were  peopled  with  friendly 
tribes;  then  the  course  of  the  river  lay  between  des- 
ert mountains,  and  they  were  fain  to  feed  upon  herbs 
and  parched  corn,  not  even  finding  a  place  where 
they  could  fish. 

Thus  far  they  seem  to  have  found  the  natives 
friendly,  or  not  actively  hostile ;  but,  as  they  descend- 
ed, they  came  to  a  populous  province,  belonging  to  a 
chief  called  Omagua,  if,  as  is  conjectured,  that  is  not 
rather  the  name  of  the  tribe  itself  than  of  their  chief. 
One  morning,  a  fleet  of  canoes  was  seen  advancing 
with  hostile  demonstrations.  The  Indians  carried 
shields  made  of  the  skins  of  the  alligator.  They  came 
on  with  beat  of  tambour  and  with  war-cries,  threaten- 
ing to  devour  the  strangers.  The  Spaniards  brought 
their  two  vessels  close  together,  that  they  might  aid 
one  another  in  the  defence.  But,  when  they  came  to 
use  their  powder,  it  was  damp,  and  they  had  nothing 
but  their  cross-bows  to  trust  to  ;  and,  plying  these  as 
well  as  they  could,  they  continued  te  fall  down  the 


fRELLANA  DESCENDS  THE  RIVER.  269 

stream,  fighting  as  they  went.  Presently  they  came 
to  an  Indian  town.  Half  the  Spaniards  landed  to 
attack  it,  leaving  their  companions  to  maintain  the 
fight  upon  the  water. 

They  won  the  town,  and  loaded  themselves  with 
provisions  ;  but  eighteen  of  the  party  were  wounded, 
and  one  killed.  They  had  neither  surgeon  nor  any 
remedy  for  the  wounded.  Nothing  could  be  done  for 
them  except  "  psalming ; "  that  is,  repeating  some 
verses  of  the  psalms  over  the  wound.  This  mode  of 
treatment  was  not  unusual ;  and,  as  it  was  less  absurd 
than  the  methods  which  were  ordinarily  in  use  at  that 
day,  it  is  no  wonder  if  it  proved  more  successful. 

For  two  days  and  two  nights  after  this,  they  were 
constantly  annoyed  by  the  canoes  of  the  natives  fol- 
lowing, and  endeavoring  to  board  them.  But  the 
Spaniards  had  now  dried  some  powder ;  and  one  of 
them,  getting  a  steady  mark  at  the  chief  of  the  Indi- 
ans, shot  him  in  the  breast.  His  people  gathered 
round  him ;  and,  while  they  were  thus  occupied,  the 
brigantines  shot  ahead. 

Thus  they  proceeded  with  alternate  good  and  evil 
fortune,  now  finding  the  Indians  friendly,  and  supplies 
of  provisions  abundant ;  and  then  encountering  hostile 
tribes  which  assailed  them  with  all  their  power,  or 


270  ELDORADO.  + 

long  regions  of  unpeopled  country,  where  they  were 
reduced  to  the  utmost  straits  for  want  of  food.  Six 
months  had  now  been  consumed  on  their  voyage,  and 
as  yet  no  appearance  of  Eldorado  ;  though,  if  their  ac- 
counts may  be  trusted,  they  several  times  came  upon 
populous  places,  which  had  many  streets,  all  opening 
upon  the  river,  and  apparently  leading  to  some 
greater  city  in  the  interior.  On  the  22d  of  June,  on 
turning  an  angle  of  the  river,  they  saw  the  country 
far  before  them,  and  great  numbers  of  people  col- 
lected, seemingly  with  hostile  intentions.  Orellana 
offered  them  trinkets,  at  which  they  scoffed ;  but  he 
persisted  in  making  towards  the  shore  to  get  food, 
either  by  persuasion  or  force.  A  shower  of  arrows 
was  discharged  from  the  shore,  which  wounded  five 
of  the  crew.  They  nevertheless  landed,  and,  after  a 
hot  contest,  repulsed  the  natives,  killing  some  seven 
or  eight  of  them.  The  historian  of  the  voyage,  who 
was  one  of  the  adventurers,  affirms  that  ten  or  twelve 
Amazons  fought  at  the  head  of  these  people,  who 
were  their  subjects,  and  fought  desperately ;  because 
any  one  who  fled  in  battle  would  be  beaten  to  death 
by  these  female  tyrants.  He  describes  the  women 
as  very  tall  and  large-limbed,  white  of  complexion,  the 
hair  long,  platted,  and  banded  round  the  head.  It  is 


ORELLANA  DESCENDS  THE  RIVEE.       271 

amusing  to  observe  how  this  story  was  magnified  by 
later  narrators,  who  learned  it  only  by  tradition.  It 
is  stated  in  these  late  accounts  that  Orellana  fought 
on  this  occasion  with  a  great  army  of  women. 

Of  a  prisoner  whom  they  took,  Orellana  asked  ques- 
tions about  Eldorado  and  the  Amazons,  and  got,  as 
usual,  such  answers  as  he  expected.  This  may  partly 
be  set  down  to  the  score  of  self-deception,  and  partly 
to  the  fact  that  they  conversed  with  these  people  by 
signs,  and  by  means  of  the  few  words  of  their  lan- 
guage which  the  Spaniards  knew,  or  supposed  they 
knew,  the  meaning  of.  He  learned  from  the  prisoner 
that  the  country  was  subject  to  women,  who  lived 
after  the  manner  of  the  Amazons  of  the  ancients,  and 
who  possessed  gold  and  silver  in  abundance.  There 
were  in  their  dominions  fine  temples  of  the  sun,  all 
covered  with  plates  of  gold.  Their  houses  were  of 
stone,  and  their  cities  walled.  We  can  hardly  doubt 
that  the  desire  to  tempt  adventurers  to  join  him  in 
his  subsequent  expedition  to  conquer  and  colonize 
those  countries  had  its  effect  in  magnifying  these 
marvels. 

Shortly  after  this,  the  Spaniards  thought  they  per- 
ceived the  tide.  After  another  day's  voyage,  they 
came  to  some  inhabited  islands,  and,  to  their  infinite 


272  ELDORADO. 

joy,  saw  that  they  had  not  been  mistaken ;  for  the 
marks  of  the  tide  here  were  certain.  Here  they  lost 
another  of  their  party  in  a  skirmish  with  the  natives. 
From  this  place  the  country  was  low ;  and  they  could 
never  venture  to  land,  except  upon  the  islands,  among 
which  they  sailed,  as  they  supposed,  about  two  hun- 
dred leagues ;  the  tide  coming  up  with  great  force. 
One  day  the  smaller  vessel  struck  upon  a  snag,  which 
stove  in  one  of  her  planks,  and  she  filled.  They,  how- 
ever, landed  to  seek  for  provisions ;  but  the  inhabit- 
ants attacked  them  with  such  force,  that  they  were 
forced  to  retire ;  and,  when  they  came  to  their  vessels, 
they  found  that  the  tide  had  left  the  only  serviceable 
one  dry.  Orellana  ordered  half  his  men  to  fight,  and 
the  other  half  to  thrust  the  vessel  into  the  water : 
that  done,  they  righted  the  old  brigantine,  and  fast- 
ened in  a  new  plank,  all  which  was  completed  in  three 
hours,  by  which  time  the  Indians  were  weary  of  fight- 
ing, and  left  them  in  peace.  The  next  day  they  found 
a  desert  place,  where  Orellana  halted  to  repair  both 
vessels.  This  took  them  eighteen  days,  during  which 
they  suffered  much  from  hunger. 

As  they  drew  near  the  sea,  they  halted  again  for 
fourteen  days,  to  prepare  for  their  sea-voyage  ;  made 
cordage  of  herbs  ;  and  sewed  the  cloaks,  on  which  they 


OR  ELL  AN  A  DESCENDS  THE  RIVER.  273 

slept,  into  sails.  On  the  8th  of  August,  they  pro- 
ceeded again,  anchoring  with  stones  when  the  tide 
turned,  though  it  sometimes  came  in  such  strength  as 
to  drag  these  miserable  anchors.  Here  the  natives 
were  happily  of  a  milder  mood  than  those  whom  they 
had  lately  dealt  with.  From  them  they  procured 
roots  and  Indian  corn  ;  and,  having  laid  in  what  store 
they  could,  they  made  ready  to  enter  upon  the  sea  in 
these  frail  vessels,  with  their  miserable  tackling,  and 
with  insufficient  food,  without  pilot,  compass,  or  any 
knowledge  of  the  coast. 

It  was  on  the  26th  of  August  that  they  sailed  out 
of  the  river,  passing  between  two  islands,  which  were 
about  four  leagues  asunder.  The  whole  length  of  the 
voyage  from  the  place  where  they  had  embarked  to 
the  sea  they  computed  at  eighteen  hundred  leagues. 
Thus  far  their  weather  had  been  always  favorable, 
and  it  did  not  fail  them  now.  They  kept  along  the 
coast  to  the  northward,  just  at  safe  distance.  The 
two  brigantines  parted  company  in  the  night.  They 
in  the  larger  one  got  into  the  Gulf  of  Paria,  from 
whence  all  their  labor  at  the  oar  for  seven  days  could 
not  extricate  them.  During  this  time,  they  lived  upon 
a  sort  of  plum  called  "  nogos,"  being  the  only  food 
they  could  find.  At  length  they  were  whirled 

18 


274  ELDORADO. 

through  those  tremendous  channels  which  Columbus 
called  the  "  Dragon's  mouths/'  and,  September  the 
llth,  not  knowing  where  they  were,  reached  the 
Island  of  Cubagua,  where  they  found  a  colony  of  their 
countrymen.  The  old  brigantine  had  arrived  at  the 
same  place  two  days  before  them.  Here  they  were 
received  with  the  welcome  which  their  wonderful 
adventure  deserved ;  and  from  hence  Orellana  pro- 
ceeded to  Spain,  to  give  the  king  an  account  of  his 
discoveries  in  person. 


CHAPTER    III. 

ORELLANA'S  ADVENTURE  CONTINUED. 

/^"\RELLANA  arrived  safe  in  Spain,  and  was  favor- 
^^^  ably  received.  His  act  of  insubordination  in 
leaving  his  commander  was  forgotten  in  the  success 
of  his  achievement ;  for  it  had  been  successful,  even 
if  the  naked  facts  only  had  been  told,  inasmuch  as  it 
was  the  first  event  which  led  to  any  certain  knowl- 
edge of  the  immense  regions  that  stretch  eastward 
from  the  Andes  to  the  ocean,  besides  being  in  itself 
one  of  the  most  brilliant  adventures  of  that  remarka- 
ble age.  But  Orellana's  accounts  went  far  beyond 
these  limits,  and  confirming  all  previous  tales  of  the 
wonderful  Eldorado,  with  its  temples  roofed  with 
gold,  and  its  mountains  composed  of  precious  stones, 
drew  to  his  standard  numerous  followers.  Every 
thing  promised  fairly.  The  king  granted  him  a  com- 
mission to  conquer  the  countries  which  he  had  ex- 
plored. He  raised  funds  for  the  expedition,  and  even 

275 


276  ELDORADO. 

> 

found  a  wife  who  was  willing  to  accompany  him.  Tn 
May,  1544,  he  set  sail  with  four  ships  and  four  hun- 
dred men. 

But  the  tide  of  Orellana's  fortune  had  turned.  He 
stopped  three  months  at  Teneriffe,  and  two  at  the 
Cape  de  Verde,  where  ninety-eight  of  his  people  died, 
and  fifty  were  invalided.  The  expedition  proceeded 
with  three  ships,  and  met  with  contrary  winds,  which 
detained  them  till  their  water  was  exhausted ;  and,  had 
it  not  been  for  heavy  rains,  all  must  have  perished. 
One  ship  put  back  in  this  distress,  with  seventy  men 
and  eleven  horses  on  board,  and  was  never  heard  of 
after.  The  remaining  two  reached  the  river.  Hav- 
ing ascended  about  a  hundred  leagues,  they  stopped 
to  build  a  brigantine.  Provisions  were  scarce  here, 
and  fifty-seven  more  of  his  party  died.  These  men 
were  not,  like  his  former  comrades,  seasoned  to  the 
climate,  and  habituated  to  the  difficulties  of  the  new 
world.  One  ship  was  broken  up  here  for  the  mate- 
rials :  the  other  met  with  an  accident,  and  became 
unserviceable  ;  and  they  cut  her  up,  and  made  a  bark 
of  the  timbers. 

Orellana  meanwhile,  in  the  brigantine,  was  endeav- 
oring to  discover  the  main  branch  of  the  river,  which 
it  had  been  easy  to  keep  when  carried  down  by  the 


ORELL ANA'S  ADVENTURE  CONTINUED.  277 

stream,  but  which  he  now  sought  in  vain  for  thirty 
days  among  a  labyrinth  of  channels.  When  he  re- 
turned from  this  fruitless  search,  he  was  ill,  and  told 
his  people  that  he  would  go  back  to  Point  St.  Juan ; 
and  there  he  ordered  them  to  seek  him  when  they 
had  got  the  bark  ready.  But  he  found  his  sickness 
increase  upon  him,  and  determined  to  abandon,  the 
expedition,  and  return  to  Europe.  While  he  was 
seeking  provisions  for  the  voyage,  the  Indians  killed 
seventeen  of  his  men.  What  with  vexation  and  dis- 
order, he  died  in  the  river.  This  sealed  the  fate  of 
the  expedition.  The  survivors  made  no  further  exer- 
tions to  reach  Eldorado,  but  returned  to  their  own 
country  as  they  could.  Such  was  the  fate  of  Orel- 
lana,  who,  as  a  discoverer,  surpassed  all  his  country- 
men ;  and  though,  as  a  conqueror,  he  was  unfortunate, 
yet  neither  is  he  chargeable  with  any  of  those  atroci- 
ties toward  the  unhappy  natives  which  have  left  such 
a  stain  on  the  glories  of  Cortes  and  Pizarro. 

The  next  attempt  we  read  of  to  discover  Eldorado 
was  made  a  few  years  after,  under  Hernando  de  Ri- 
bera,  by  ascending  the  La  Plata,  or  River  of  Para- 
guay. He  sailed  in  a  brigantine  with  eighty  men, 
and  encountered  no  hostility  from  the  natives.  They 
confirmed  the  stories  of  the  Amazons  with  their 


278  ELDORADO, 

golden  city.  "  How  could  they  get  at  them  ?  "  was 
the  next  question :  "  by  land,  or  by  water  ?  " —  "  Only 
by  land/'  was  the  reply.  "  But  it  was  a  two-months' 
journey;  and  to  reach  them  now  would  be  impossi- 
ble, because  the  country  was  inundated."  The  Span- 
iards made  light  of  this  obstacle,  but  asked  for  In- 
dians to  carry  their  baggage.  The  chief  gave  Ribera 
twenty  for  himself,  and  five  for  each  of  his  men  ;  and 
these  desperate  adventurers  set  off  on  their  march 
over  a  flooded  country. 

Eight  days  they  travelled  through  water  up  to 
their  knees,  and  sometimes  up  to  their  middle.  By 
slinging  their  hammocks  to  trees,  and  by  this  means 
only,'  could  they  find  dry  positions  for  the  night. 
Before  they  could  make  a  fire  to  dress  their  food, 
they  were  obliged  to  raise  a  rude  scaffolding;  and 
this  was  unavoidably  so  insecure,  that  frequently  the 
fire  burned  through,  and  food  and  all  fell  into  the 
water.  They  reached  another  tribe,  and  were  told 
that  the  Amazons'  country  was  still  nine  days  farther 
on;  and  then  still  another  tribe,  who  told  them  it 
would  take  a  month  to  reach  them.  Perhaps  they 
would  still  have  advanced ;  but  here  an  insuperable 
obstacle  met  them.  The  locusts  for  two  successive 
years  had  devoured  every  thing  before  them,  arid  no 


ORELL ANA'S  ADVENTURE  CONTINUED.  279 

food  was  to  be  had.  The  Spaniards  had  no  alterna- 
tive but  to  march  back.  On  their  way,  they  were  re- 
duced to  great  distress  for  want  of  food ;  and  from 
this  cause,  and  travelling  so  long  half  under  water, 
the  greater  number  fell  sick,  and  many  died.  Of 
eighty  men  who  accompanied  Ribera  upon  this  dread- 
ful march,  only  thirty  recovered  from  its  effects. 

This  expedition  added  a  few  items  to  the  story  of 
Eldorado.  Ribera  declares  under  oath  that  the  na- 
tives told  him  of  a  nation  of  women,  governed  by  a 
woman,  and  so  warlike  as  to  be  dreaded  by  all  their 
neighbors.  They  possessed  plenty  of  white  and  yel- 
low metal :  their  seats,  and  all  the  utensils  in  their 
houses,  were  made  of  them.  They  lived  on  a  large 
island,  which  was  in  a  huge  lake,  which  they  called 
the  "  Mansion  of  the  Sun,"  because  the  sun  sank  into 
it.  The  only  way  of  accounting  for  these  stories  is, 
that  the  Spaniards  furnished,  in  the  shape  of  ques- 
tions, the  information  which  they  fancied  they  re- 
ceived in  reply ;  the  Indians  assenting  to  what  they 
understood  but  imperfectly,  or  not  at  all. 

MARTINEZ. 

Another  expedition,  not  long  after  Orellana's,  was 
that  conducted  by  Don  Diego  Ordaz,  of  which  Sir 


280  ELDORADO. 

Walter  Raleigh,  in  his  "  History  of  Guiana/'  gives  an 
account.  The  expedition  failed ;  Ordaz  being  slain 
in  a  mutiny  of  his  men,  and  those  who  went  with  him 
being  scattered.  The  only  noticeable  result  was  in 
the  adventures  of  one  Martinez,  an  officer  of  Ordaz, 
who  had  charge  of  the  ammunition.  We  tell  the 
story  in  the  language  of  Sir  Walter,  slightly  modern- 
ized :  — 

"It  chanced,  that  while  Ordaz,  with  his  army,  rested  at  the 
port  of  Morequito,  by  some  negligence  the  whole  store  of  pow- 
der provided  for  the  service  was  set  on  fire ;  and  Martinez,  hav- 
ing the  chief  charge  thereof,  was  condemned  by  the  general  to 
be  executed  forthwith.  Martinez,  being  much  favored  by  the 
soldiers,  had  all  means  possible  employed  to  save  his  life ;  but  it 
could  not  be  obtained  in  other  way  but  this,  —  that  he  should 
be  set  into  a  canoe  alone,  without  any  food,  and  so  turned  loose 
into  the  great  river.  But  it  pleased  God  that  the  canoe  was  car- 
ried down  the  stream,  and  that  certain  of  the  Guianians  met  it  the 
same  evening :  and,  not  having  at  any  time  seen  any  European, 
they  carried  Martinez  into  the  land  to  be  wondered  at ;  and  so 
from  town  to  town  until  he  came  to  the  great  city  of  Manoa, 
the  seat  and  residence  of  Inga,  the  emperor.  The  emperor, 
when  he  beheld  him,  knew  him  to  be  a  Christian  of  those  who 
had  conquered  the  neighboring  country  of  Peru,  and  caused 
him  to  be  lodged  in  his  palace,  and  well  entertained.  He  lived 
seven  months  in  Manoa,  but  was  not  suffered  to  wander  into 
the  country  anywhere.  He  was  also  brought  thither  all  the 
way  blindfolded  by  the  Indians,  until  he  came  to  the  entrance 


ORELL  ANA'S  ADVENTURE  CONTINUED.  281 

of  Manoa  itself.  He  avowed  at  his  death  that  he  entered  the 
city  at  noon,  and  then  they  uncovered  his  face ;  and  that  he 
travelled  all  that  day  till  night  through  the  city,  ere  he  came  to 
the  palace  of  Inga. 

"After  Martinez  had  lived  seven  months  in  Manoa,  and  be- 
gan to  understand  the  language  of  the  country,  Inga  asked  him 
whether  Tie  desired  to  return  to  his  own  country,  or  would  will- 
ingly abide  with  him.  Martinez,  not  desirous  to  stay,  obtained 
permission  of  Inga  to  depart,  who  sent  with  him  some  Guianians 
to  conduct  him  to  the  river  of  Orinoco,  with  as  much  gold  as 
they  could  carry,  which  he  gave  to  Martinez  at  his  departure. 
But,  when  he  arrived  at  the  river's  side,  the  natives,  being  at 
that  time  at  war  with  Inga,  robbed  him  and  his  Guianians  of  all 
his  treasure,  save  only  two  bottles  made  of  gourds,  which  were 
filled  with  beads  of  gold,  which  those  people  thought  to  contain 
his  drink  or  food,  with  which  he  was  at  liberty  to  depart.  So, 
in  a  canoe,  he  passed  down  by  the  river  to  Trinidad,  and  from 
thence  to  Porto  Rico,  where  he  died.  In  the  time  of  his  ex- 
treme sickness,  and  when  he  was  without  hope  of  life,  receiving 
the  sacrament  at  the  hands  of  his  confessor,  he  delivered  this 
relation  of  his  travels,  and  also  called  for  his  calabazas,  or 
gourds  of  gold  beads,  which  he  gave  to  the  church  and  the 
friars,  to  be  prayed  for. 

' '  This  Martinez  was  the  one  who  christened  the  city  of  Manoa 
by  the  name  '  Eldorado,'  and  upon  this  occasion.  At  the  times 
of  their  solemn  feasts,  when  the  emperor  carouses  with  his  cap- 
tains, tributaries,  and  governors,  the  manner  is  thus  :  All  those 
that  pledge  him  are  first  stripped  naked,  and  their  bodies 
anointed  all  over  with  a  kind  of  white  balsam  very  precious. 
When  they  are  anointed  all  over,  certain  servants  of  the  em- 


282  ELDORADO. 

peror,  having  prepared  gold  made  into  fine  powder,  blow  it 
through  hollow  canes  upon  their  naked  bodies  until  they  be  all 
shining  from  the  head  to  the  foot.  Upon  this  sight,  and  for  the 
abundance  of  gold  which  he  saw  in  the  city,  the  images  of  gold 
in  their  temples,  the  plates,  armors,  and  shields  of  gold  which 
they  use  in  the  wars,  he  called  it  Eldorado." 

Such  is  Sir  Walter's  narrative  of  one  of  the  tradi- 
tions which  fired  his  enthusiasm  to  undertake  the 
conquest  of  Eldorado.  He  asserts  that  he  read  it 
in  "  The  Chancery  of  Saint  Juan  de  Porto  Rico,"  of 
which  Berrio  had  a  copy.  It  is  pretty  plainly  tinc- 
tured with  fable,  but  probably  had  an  historical  foun- 
dation. 

After  this,  a  good  many  years  elapsed  before  any 
other  expedition  of  note  was  fitted  out  in  search  of 
Eldorado.  But  the  story  grew,  notwithstanding.  An 
imaginary  kingdom  was  shaped  out.  It  was  governed 
by  a  potentate  who  was  called  the  Great  Paytiti, 
sometimes  the  Great  Moxu,  sometimes  the  Enim,  or 
Great  Para.  An  impostor  at  Lima  affirmed  that  he 
had  been  in  his  capital,  the  city  of  Manoa,  where  not 
fewer  than  three  thousand  workmen  were  employed 
in  the  silversmiths'  street.  He  even  produced  a  map 
of  the  country,  in  which  he  had  marked  a  hill  of  gold, 
another  of  silver,  and  a  third  of  salt.  The  columns 


ORELLANA'S  ADVENTURE  CONTINUED,  283 

of  the  palace  were  described  as  of  porphyry  and  ala- 
baster, the  galleries  of  ebony  and  cedar :  the  throne 
was  of  ivory,  and  the  ascent  to  it  by  steps  of  gold. 
The  palace  was  built  of  white  stone.  At  the  en- 
trance were  two  toweps,  and  between  them  a  column 
twenty-five  feet  in  height.  On  its  top  was  a  large 
silver  moon ;  and  two  living  lions  were  fastened  to  its 
base  with  chains  of  gold.  Having  passed  by  these 
keepers,  you  came  into  a  quadrangle  planted  with 
trees,  and  watered  by  a  silver  fountain,  which  spouted 
through  four  golden  pipes.  The  gate  of  the  palace 
was  of  copper,  and  its  bolt  was  received  in  the  solid 
rock.  Within,  a  golden  sun  was  placed  upon  an  altar 
of  silver ;  and  four  lamps  were  kept  burning  before  it 
day  and  night. 

It  may  surprise  us  that  tales  so  palpably  false  as 
these  should  have  deceived  any,  to  such  an  extent 
as  to  lead  them  to  get  up  costly  and  hazardous  expe- 
ditions to  go  in  search  of  the  wonder ;  but  we  must 
remember,  that  what  the  Spaniards  had  already  real- 
ized and  demonstrated  to  the  world  in  their  con- 
quests of  Mexico  and  Peru  was  hardly  less  astonish- 
ing than  these  accounts.  It  is  therefore  no  wonder 
that  multitudes  should  be  found  willing  to  admit  so 
much  of  the  marvels  of  Eldorado  as  to  see  in  them 


284  ELDORADO. 

a  sufficient  inducement  to  justify  the  search;  and 
others  less  credulous  were  perhaps  willing  to  avail 
themselves  of  the  credulity  of  the  multitude  to  ac- 
complish plans  of  conquest  and  ambition  for  them- 
selves. Of  the  latter  class,  -we  may  imagine  the 
celebrated  Sir  Walter  Raleigh  to  be  one,  who,  at  this 
time,  undertook  an  expedition  for  the  discovery  and 
conquest  of  Eldorado. 


CHAPTER   IV. 

SIB  WALTER  RALEIGH. 

TT7"  ALTER  RALEIGH  was  born  in  the  year  1552 
in  Devonshire,  England,  and  received  a  good 
education,  completed  by  a  residence  of  two  years  at 
the  University  of  Oxford.  At  the  age  of  seventeen, 
he  joined  a  volunteer  corps  of  English  to  serve  in 
France  in  aid  of  the  Protestant  cause.  Afterwards 
he  served  five  years  in  the  Netherlands.  In  1576,  he 
accompanied  his  half-brother,  Sir  Humphrey  Gilbert, 
on  an  expedition  to  colonize  some  part  of  North  Amer- 
ica; which  expedition  was  unsuccessful.  We  next 
find  him  commanding  a  company  of  the  royal  troops 
in  Ireland  during  the  rebellion  raised  by  the  Earl  of 
Desmond.  In  consequence  of  some  serious  differ- 
ences which  arose  between  him  and  his  superior  offi- 
cer, he  found  it  necessary  to  repair  to  court  to  justify 
himself.  It  was  at  this  time  that  an  incident  occurred 
which  recommended  him  to  the  notice  of  Queen  Eliza- 

285 


286  ELDORADO. 

beth,  and  was  the  foundation  of  his  fortunes.  Raleigh 
stood  in  the  crowd  one  day  where  the  queen  passed 
on  foot ;  and  when  she  came  to  a  spot  of  muddy 
ground,  and  hesitated  for  a  moment  where  to  step, 
he  sprang  forward,  and,  throwing  from  his  shoulders 
his  handsome  cloak  ("  his  clothes  being  then,"  says  a 
quaint  old  writer,  "a  considerable  part  of  his  estate"), 
he  spread  it  over  the  mud,  so  that  the  queen  passed 
over  dry-shod,  doubtless  giving  an  approving  look  to 
the  handsome  and  quick-witted  young  officer.  There 
is  another  story  which  is  not  less  probable,  because 
it  is  not  less  in  character  with  both  the  parties.  Find- 
ing some  hopes  of  the  queen's  favor  glancing  on  him, 
he  wrote,  on  a  window  where  it  was  likely  to  meet 
her  eye,  — 

"  Fain  would  I  climb,  but  that  I  fear  to  fall." 

And  her  majesty,  espying  it,  wrote  underneath,  — 

"  If  thy  heart  fail  thee,  wherefore  climb  at  all  ?  " 

His  progress  in  the  queen's  favor  was  enhanced  by 
his  demeanor  when  the  matter  in  dispute  between 
him  and  his  superior  officer  was  brought  before  the 
privy  council,  and  each  party  was  called  upon  to  plead 
his  own  cause.  "  What  advantage  he  had  in  the  case 


SIR   WALTER  RALEIGH.  287 

in  controversy,"  says  a  contemporary  writer,  "  I  know 
not ;  but  he  had  much  the  better  in  the  manner  of  tell- 
ing his  tale."  The  result  was,  that  he  became  a  man 
of  "  no  slight  mark ; "  "he  had  gotten  the  queen's 
ear  in  a  trice ;  "  "  she  took  him  for  a  kind  of  oracle," 
and  "  loved  to  hear  his  reasons  to  her  demands," 
or,  in  more  modern  phrase,  "  his  replies  to  her  ques- 
tions." 

The  reign  of  Queen  Elizabeth  has  been  called  the 
heroic  age  of  England.  And,  let  us  remember,  the 
England  of  that  day  is  ours  as  much  as  theirs  who 
still  bear  the  name  of  Englishmen.  The  men  whose 
gallant  deeds  we  now  record  were  our  ancestors,  and 
their  glory  is  our  inheritance. 

The  Reformation  in  religion  had  awakened  all  the 
energies  of  the  human  mind.  It  had  roused  against 
England  formidable  enemies,  among  which  Spain  was 
the  most  powerful  and  the  most  intensely  hostile. 
She  fitted  out  the  famous  Armada  to  invade  England ; 
and  England,  on  her  part,  sent  various  expeditions  to 
annoy  the  Spaniards  in  their  lately  acquired  posses- 
sions in  South  America.  These  expeditions  were 
generally  got  up  by  private  adventurers  ;  the  queen 
and  her  great  nobles  often  taking  a  share  in  them. 
When  there  was  nominal  peace  with  Spain,  such  en- 


288  ELDORADO. 

terprises  were  professedly  for  discovery  and  coloniza- 
tion, though  the  adventurers  could  not  always  keep 
their  hands  off  a  rich  prize  of  Spanish  property  that 
fell  in  their  way ;  but,  for  the  last  fifteen  years  of 
Elizabeth's  reign,  there  was  open  war  between  the 
two  powers  :  and  then  these  expeditions  had  for  their 
first  object  the  annoyance  of  Spain,  and  discovery  and 
colonization  for  their  second. 

We  find  Raleigh,  after  fortune  began  to  smile  upon 
him,  engaged  in  a  second  expedition,  with  Sir  Hum- 
phrey Gilbert,  for  discovery  and  colonization  in 
America.  He  furnished,  from  his  own  means,  a  ship 
called  "The  Raleigh,"  on  board  of  which  he  embarked  ; 
but  when  a  few  days  out,  a  contagious  disease  break- 
ing out  among  the  crew,  he  put  back  into  port,  and 
relinquished  the  expedition.  Sir  Humphrey,  with 
the  rest  of  the  squadron,  consisting  of  five  vessels, 
reached  Newfoundland  without  accident,  took  posses- 
sion of  the  island,  and  left  a  colony  there.  He  then 
set  out  exploring  along  the  American  coast  to  the 
south,  he  himself  doing  all  the  work  in  his  little  ten- 
ton  cutter ;  the  service  being  too  dangerous  for  the 
larger  vessels  to  venture  on.  He  spent  the  summer 
in  this  labor  till  toward  the  end  of  August,  when,  in 
a  violent  storm,  one  of  the  larger  vessels,  "  The  De- 


SIH   WALTER  RALEIGH.  289 

light/'  was  lost  with  all  her  crew.  "  The  Golden 
Hind"  and  "  Squirrel"  were  now  left  alone  of  the  five 
ships.  Their  provisions  were  running  short,  and  the 
season  far  advanced  ;  and  Sir  Humphrey  reluctantly 
concluded  to  lay  his  course  for  home.  He  still  contin- 
ued in  the  small  vessel,  though  vehemently  urged  by 
his  friends  to  remove  to  the  larger  one.  "  I  will  not 
forsake  my  little  company,  going  homeward,"  said  he, 
"  with  whom  I  have  passed  so  many  storms  and  perils." 
On  the  9th  of  September,  the  weather  was  rough,  and 
the  cutter  was  with  difficulty  kept  afloat,  struggling 
with  the  violence  of  the  waves.  When  the  vessels 
came  within  hearing  distance,  Sir  Humphrey  cried 
out  to  his  companions  in  "  The  Hind,"  "  Be  of  good 
courage  :  we  are  as  near  to  heaven  by  sea  as  by  land.' ' 
"  That  night,  at  about  twelve  o'clock,"  writes  the  his- 
torian of  the  voyage,  who  was  himself  one  of  the  ad- 
venturers, "  the  cutter  being  ahead  of  us  in '  The  Gol- 
den Hind/  suddenly  her  lights  were  out,  and  the  watch 
cried,  *  The  general  is  cast  away ! '  which  was  too 
true."  So  perished  a  Christian  hero.  It  was  a  fine 
end  for  a  mortal  man.  Let  us  not  call  it  sad  or  tragic, 
but  heroic  and  sublime. 

Raleigh,  not  discouraged  by  the  ill  success  of  this 
expedition,  shortly  after  obtained  letters-patent   for 

19 


290  ELDORADO. 

another  enterprise  of  the  same  kind,  on  the  same 
terms  as  had  been  granted  to  Sir  Humphrey.  Two 
barks  were  sent  to  explore  some  undiscovered  part 
of  America  north  of  Florida,  and  look  out  for  a  favora- 
ble situation  for  the  proposed  colony.  This  expedi- 
tion landed  on  Roanoke  Island,  near  the  mouth  of 
Albemarle  Sound.  Having  taken  formal  possession 
of  the  country  for  the  Queen  of  England  and  her  ser- 
vant Sir  Walter  Raleigh,  they  returned,  and  gave  so 
favorable  an  account  of  the  country,  that  her  Majesty 
allowed  it  to  be  called  Virginia,  after  herself,  a  virgin 
queen.  The  next  year,  Raleigh  sent  out  a  second 
expedition,  and  left  a  colony  of  a  hundred  men,  which 
was  the  first  colony  planted  by  Englishmen  on  the 
continent  of  America.  Soon  after,  Raleigh  sent  a 
third  expedition  with  a  hundred  and  fifty  colonists ; 
but  having  now  expended  forty  thousand  pounds  upon 
these  attempts,  and  being  unable  to  persist  further,  or 
weary  of  waiting  so  long  for  profitable  returns,  he 
assigned  over  his  patent  to  a  company  of  merchants, 
and  withdrew  from  further  prosecution  of  the  enter- 
prise. 

The  years  which  followed  were  the  busiest  of  Ra- 
leigh's adventurous  life.  He  "  bore  a  distinguished 
part  in  the  defeat  of  the  Spanish  Armada ;  and,  in  the 


SIR   WALTER  RALEIGH.  291 

triumphant  procession  to  return  thanks  at  St.  Paul's 
for  that  great  deliverance,  he  was  conspicuous  as  com- 
mander of  the  queen's  guard.  He  was  a  member  of 
Parliament,  yet  engaged  personally  in  two  naval  ex- 
peditions against  the  Spaniards,  from  which  he  reaped 
honor,  but  no  profit ;  and  was  at  the  height  of  favor 
with  the  queen.  But,  during  his  absence  at  sea,  the 
queen  discovered  that  an  intrigue  existed  between 
Ealeigh  and  one  of  the  maids  of  honor,  which  was  an 
offence  particularly  displeasing  to  Elizabeth,  who 
loved  to  fancy  that  all  her  handsome  young  courtiers 
were  too  much  attached  to  herself  to  be  capable  of 
loving  any  other  object.  Raleigh,  on  his  return,  was 
committed  a  prisoner  to  the  Tower,  and,  on  being  re- 
leased after  a  short  confinement,  retired  to  his  estate 
in  Dorsetshire.  It  was  during  this  retirement  that 
he  formed  his  scheme  for  the  discovery  and  conquest 
of  Eldorado.  It  had  long  been  a  subject  of  meditation 
to  Raleigh,  who  declares  in  the  dedication  of  his  "  His- 
tory of  Guiana,"  published  after  his  return,  that  "  many 
years  since,  he  had  knowledge,  by.  relation,  of  that 
mighty,  rich,  and  beautiful  empire  of  Guiana,  and  of 
that  great  and  golden  city  which  the  -Spaniards  call 
Eldorado,  and  the  naturals  Manoa."  —  "  It  is  not  possi- 
ble," says  one  of  the  historians  of  these  events,  "  that 


292  ELDORADO 

Raleigh  could  have  believed  the  existence  of  such  a 
kingdom.  Credulity  was  not  the  vice  of  his  nature  ; 
but,  having  formed  the  project  of  colonizing  Guiana, 
he  employed  these  fables  as  baits  for  vulgar  cupidi- 
ty." Other  writers  judge  him  more  favorably.  It 
is  probably  true  that  he  believed  in  the  existence  of 
such  a  country  as  Eldorado ;  but  we  can  hardly  gup- 
pose  that  he  put  faith  in  all  the  marvellous  details 
which  accompanied  the  main  fact  in  popular  narra- 
tion. 


CHAPTER   V. 

RALEIGH'S  FIEST  EXPEDITION. 

A  S  the  attempts  of  Pizarro  and  Orellana  were 
made  by  the  route  of  the  river  of  the  Ama- 
zons, and  that  of  Ribera  by  the  river  of  Paraguay, 
Raleigh's  approach  was  by  the  Orinoco,  a  river  sec- 
ond in  size  only  to  the  Amazons,  and  which  flows  in  a 
course  somewhat  parallel  to  that,  and  some  five  or 
ten  degrees  farther  to  the  north.  The  region  of 
country  where  this  river  discharges  itself  into  the 
Atlantic  was  nominally  in  possession  of  the  Span- 
iards, though  they  had  but  one  settlement  in  what 
was  called  the  province  of  Guiana,  —  the  town  of  St. 
Joseph,  then  recently  founded ;  and  another  on  the 
island  of  Trinidad,  which  lies  nearly  opposite  the 
mouth  of  the  river.  Raleigh,  arriving  at  Trinidad, 
stopped  some  days  to  procure  such  intelligence  as 
the  Spaniards  resident  there  could  afford  him  re- 
specting Guiana.  He  then  proceeded  to  the  main 

293 


294  ELDORADO. 

land,  destroyed  the  town  which  the  Spaniards  had 
lately  built  there,  and  took  the  governor,  Berrio,  on 
board  his  own  ship.  He  used  his  prisoner  well,  and 
"  gathered  from  him,"  he  says,  "  as  much  of  Guiana 
as  he  knew."  Berrio  seems  to  have  conversed  will- 
ingly upon  his  own  adventures  in  exploring  the  coun- 
try, having  no  suspicion  of  Raleigh's  views.  He 
discouraged  Raleigh's  attempts  to  penetrate  into  the 
country,  telling  him  that  he  would  find  the  river 
unnavigable  for  his  ships,  and  the  nations  hostile. 
These  representations  had  little  weight  with  Raleigh, 
as  he  attributed  them  to  a  very  natural  wish  on  Ber- 
rio's  part  to  keep  off  foreigners  from  his  province ; 
but,  on  trying  to  find  the  entrance  to  the  river,  he 
discovered  Berrio's  account  to  be  true,  so  far  as  re- 
lated to  the  difficulties  of  the  navigation.  After  a 
thorough  search  for  a  practicable  entrance,  he  gave 
up  all  hopes  of  passing  in  any  large  vessel,  and  re- 
solved to  go  with  the  boats.  He  took  in  his  largest 
boat,  with  himself,  sixty  men,  including  his  cousin, 
his  nephew,  and  principal  officers.  Another  boat  car- 
ried twenty,  and  two  others  ten  each.  "  We  had  no 
other  means,"  he  says  in  his  account  afterward  pub- 
lished, "but  to  carry  victual  for  a  month  in  the  same, 
and  also  to  lodge  therein  as  we  could,  and  to  boil  and 
dress  our  meat." 


RALEIGH'S  FIRST  EXPEDITION.  295 

The  Orinoco,  at  nearly  forty  leagues  from  the  sea, 
forms,  like  the  Nile,  a  kind  of  fan,  strewed  over  with 
a  multitude  of  little  islands,  that  divide  it  into  numer- 
ous branches  and  channels,  and  force  it  to  discharge 
itself  through  this  labyrinth  into  the  sea  by  an  infin- 
ity of  mouths,  occupying  an  extent  of  more  than 
sixty  leagues.  "  The  Indians  who  inhabit  those 
islands,"  says  Raleigh,  "  in  the  summer,  have  houses 
upon  the  ground,  as  in  other  places ;  in  the  winter 
they  dwell  upon  the  trees,  where  they  build  very 
artificial  towns  and  villages :  for,  between  May  and 
September,  the  river  rises  to  thirty  feet  upright,  and 
then  are  those  islands  overflowed  twenty  feet  high 
above  the  level  of  the  ground;  and  for  this  cause 
they  are  enforced  to  live  in  this  manner.  They  use 
the  tops  of  palmitoes  for  bread;  and  kill  deer,  fish,  and 
porks  for  the  rest  of  their  sustenance."  Raleigh's 
account  is  confirmed  by  later  travellers.  Humboldt 
says,  ''  The  navigator,  in  proceeding  along  the 
channels  of  the  delta  of  the  Orinoco  at  night,  sees 
with  surprise  the  summits  of  the  palm-trees  illumi- 
nated by  large  fires.  These  are  the  habitations 
of-  the  Guaraons,  which  are  suspended  from  the 
trees.  These  tribes  hang  up  mats  in  the  air, 
which  they  fill  with  earth,  and  kindle,  on  a  layer 


296  ELDORADO. 

of  moist  clay,  the  fire  necessary  for  their  household 
wants." 

Passing  up  with  the  flood,  and  anchoring  during  the 
ebb,  Raleigh  and  his  companions  went  on,  till  on  the 
third  day  their  galley  grounded,  and  stuck  so  fast, 
that  they  feared  their  discovery  must  end  there,  and 
they  be  left  to  inhabit,  like  rooks  upon  trees,  with 
these  nations ;  but  on  the  morrow,  after  casting  out 
all  her  ballast,  with  "tugging  and  hauling  to  and  fro, 
they  got  her  afloat.  After  four  days  more,  they  got 
beyond  the  influence  of  the  tide,  and  were  forced  to 
row  against  a  violent  current,  till  they  began  to  de- 
spair ;  the  weather  being  excessively  hot,  and  the 
river  bordered  with  high  trees,  that  kept  away  the 
air.  Their  provisions  began  to  fail  them ;  but  some 
relief  they  found  by  shooting  birds  of  all  colors, 
—  carnation,  crimson,  orange,  purple,  and  of  all 
other  sorts,  both  simple  and  mixed.  An  old  Indian 
whom  they  had  pressed  into  their  service  was  a  faith- 
ful guide  to  them,  and  brought  them  to  an  Indian  vil- 
lage, where  they  got  a  supply  of  bread,  fish,  and  fowl. 
They  were  thus  encouraged  to  persevere,  and  next 
day  captured  two  canoes  laden  with  bread,  "arid 
divers  baskets  of  roots,  which  were  excellent  meat." 
Probably  these  roots  were  no  other  than  potatoes ; 


RALEIGH'S  FIRST  EXPEDITION.  297 

for  the  mountains  of  Quito,  to  which  Sir  Walter  was 
now  approaching,  were  the  native  country  of  the  po- 
tato, and  the  region  from  whence  it  was  first  intro- 
duced into  Europe.  The  Spaniards  and  Portuguese 
introduced  it  earlier  than  the  English  ;  but  to  Raleigh 
belongs  the  credit  of  making  it  known  to  his  country- 
men. The  story  is,  that  Sir  Walter,  on  his  return 
home,  had  some  of  the  roots  planted  in  his  garden  at 
Youghal,  in  Ireland,  and  that  his  gardener  was  sadly 
disappointed  in  autumn  on  tasting  the  apples  of  the 
"  fine  American  fruit,"  and  proceeded  to  root  up  the 
"  useless  weeds,"  when  he  discovered  the  tubers. 

Raleigh  treated  the  natives  with  humanity,  and,  in 
turn,  received  friendly  treatment  from  them.  The 
chiefs  told  him  fine  stories  about  the  gold-mines  ;  but, 
unfortunately,  the  gold  was  not  to  be  had  without 
labor,  and  the  adventurers  were  in  no  condition  to 
undertake  mining  operations.  What  they  wanted  was 
to  find  a  region  like  Mexico  or  Peru,  only  richer, 
where  gold  might  be  found,  not  iii  the  rocks  or  the 
bowels  of  the  earth,  but  in  possession  of  the  natives, 
in  the  form  of  barbaric  ornaments  that  they  would 
freely  barter  for  European  articles,  or  images  of  their 
gods,  such  as  Christians  might  seize  and  carry  away 
with  an  approving  conscience. 


298  ELDORADO. 

Thus  far,  their  search  for  such  a  region  had  been 
unsuccessful,  and  their  only  hope  was  of  reaching  it 
by  farther  explorations.  But  the  river  was  rising 
daily,  and  the  current  flowed  with  such  rapidity,  that 
they  saw  clearly,  if  it  went  on  to  increase  as  it  had 
done  for  some  time  past,  it  must  soon  debar  all  farther 
progress. 

Raleigh  found  by  talking  with  the  chiefs  that  they 
were  all  hostile  to  the  Spaniards,  and  willing  enough 
to  promise  him  their  aid  in  driving  them  out  of  the 
country.  He  accordingly  told  them  that  he  was  sent 
by  a  great  and  virtuous  queen  to  deliver  them  from 
the  tyranny  of  the  Spaniards.  He  also  learned  that 
the  Indians  with  whom  he  was  conversing  were  an 
oppressed  race,  having  been  conquered  by  a  nation 
who  dwelt  beyond  the  mountains,  —  a  nation  who  wore 
large  coats,  and  hats  of  crimson  color,  and  whose 
houses  had  many  rooms,  one  over  the  other.  They 
were  called  the  Eperumei ;  and  against  them  all  the 
other  tribes  would  gladly  combine,  for  they  were  the 
general  oppressors.  Moreover,  the  country  of  these 
Eperumei  abounded  in  gold  and  all  other  good  things. 

He  continued  to  make  daily  efforts  to  ascend  the 
river,  and  to  explore  the  tributary  streams,  but  found 
his  progress  debarred  in  some  quarters  by  the  rapid 


RALEIGH'S  FIRST  EXPEDITION.  299 

current  of  the  swollen  streams,  and  in  others  by  falls 
in  the  rivers.  The  falls  of  one  of  the  tributaries  of 
the  Orinoco,  the  Caroli,  he  describes  as  "  a  wonderful 
breach  of  waters,  running  in  three  parts ;  and  there 
appeared  some  ten  or  twelve  over-falls  in  sight,  every 
one  as  high  over  the  other  as  a  church-tower."  He 
was  informed  that  the  lake  from  which  the  river 
issued  was  above  a  day's  journey  for  one  of  their 
canoes  to  cross,  which  he  computed  at  about  forty 
miles ;  that  many  rivers  fall  into  it,  and  great  store 
of  grains  of  gold  was  found  in  those  rivers.  On  one 
of  these  rivers,  he  was  told,  a  nation  of  people  dwell 
"  whose  heads  appear  not  above  their  shoulders ; " 
which,  he  says,  "  though  it  may  be  thought  a  mere 
fable,  yet,  for  my  own,  part,  I  am  resolved  it  is  true, 
because  every  child  in  those  provinces  affirm  the 
same.  ffchey  are  reported  to  have  their  eyes  in  their 
shoulders,  and  their  mouths  in  the  middle  of  their 
breasts,  and  that  a  long  train  of  hair  groweth  back- 
ward between  their  shoulders."  Raleigh  adds,  "  It 
was  not  my  chance  to  hear  of  them  till  I  was  come 
away.  If  I  had  but  spoken  one  word  of  it  while  I  was 
there,  I  might  have  brought  one  of  them  with  me  to 
put  the  matter  out  of  doubt."  It  might  have  been 
more  satisfactory  for  the  philosophers  if  he  had  done 


300  ELDORADO. 

so;  but  his  word  was  quite  enough  for  the  poets. 
One  of  that  class,  and  the  greatest  of  all,  William 
Shakspeare,  was,  at  that  very  time,  writing  plays  for 
the  gratification  of  Raleigh's  gracious  mistress  and 
her  subjects,  and  eagerly  availed  himself  of  this  new- 
discovered  tribe  to  introduce  one  of  them  in  his  play 
of"  The  Tempest,"  under  the  name  of  Caliban.  He  also 
makes  Othello  tell  the  gentle  Desdemona  "  of  most 
disastrous  chances,  and  of  the  cannibals  that  each 
other  eat ;  the  Anthropophagi,  and  men  whose  heads 
do  grow  beneath  their  shoulders."  Nor  are  these 
the  only  instances  in  which  we  think  we  trace  the 
influence  of  the  romantic  adventurer  on  the  suscepti- 
ble poet.  The  name  of  the  divinity  whom  Caliban 
calls  "  my  dam's  God  Setebos  "  occurs  in  Raleigh's 
narrative  as  the  name  of  an  Indian  tribe ;  and  Trin- 
culo's  plan  of  taking  Caliban  to  England  w  make  a 
show  of  him  seems  borrowed  from  this  hint  of  Ra- 
leigh's. In  his  days  of  prosperity,  Raleigh  instituted 
a  meeting  of  intellectual  men  at  "  The  Mermaid,"  a 
celebrated  tavern.  To  this  club,  Shakspeare,  Beau- 
mont, Fletcher,  Jonson,  Selden,  Donne,  and  other  dis- 
tinguished literary  men,  were  accustomed  to  repair  j 
and  here  doubtless  the  adventures  and  discoveries  of 
Sir  Walter,  set  forth  with  that  talent  of  which  his 


RALEIGH'S  FIRST  EXPEDITION.  301 

writings  furnish  abundant  proof,  often  engaged  the 
listening  group.  Raleigh  was  then  forty-eight,  and 
Shakspeare  thirty-six,  years  old.  But,  in  justice  to 
Raleigh,  it  should  be  added,  that  he  did  not  invent 
these  stories,  and  that  later  travellers  and  mission- 
aries testify  that  such  tales  were  current  among  the 
Indians,  though  as  yet  no  specimen  of  the  tribe  has 
been  seen  by  trustworthy  narrators. 

Raleigh  now  found  that  he  must  bring  his  westward 
progress  to  a  conclusion :  "  for  no  half-day  passed  but 
the  river  began  to  rage  and  overflow  very  fearfully ; 
and  the  rains  came  down  in  terrible  showers,  and 
gusts  in  great  abundance,  and  men  began  to  cry  out 
for  want  of  shift ;  for  no  man  had  place  to  bestow  any 
other  apparel  than  that  which  he  wore  on  his  back, 
and  that  was  thoroughly  washed  on  his  body  for  the 
most  part  ten  times  a  day  ;  and  we  had  now  been  near 
a  month,  every  day  passing  to  the  westward,  farther 
from  our  ships."  They  turned  back,  therefore,  and, 
passing  down  the  stream,  went,  without  labor  and 
against  the  w^nd,  little  less  than  one  hundred  miles  a 
day.  They  stopped  occasionally,  both  for  provisions, 
and  for  conference  with  the  natives.  In  particular, 
one  old  chief,  with  whom  he  had  conferred  formerly 
on  his  ascent,  gave  him  the  confidential  communica- 


302  ELDORADO. 

tion;  that  the  attempt  to  attack  the  city  of  Manoa,  at 
that  time,  was  desperate  j  for  neither  the  time  of  the 
year  was  favorable,  nor  had  he  nearly  a  sufficient 
force.  He  advised,  that,  forbearing  any  further  at- 
tempts at  that  time,  Raleigh  should  rest  satisfied  with 
the  information  he  ha,d  gained,  and  return  to  his  own 
country  for  a  larger  force,  with  which  to  come  again 
the  next  year,  and  unite  all  the  tribes  which  were 
hostile  to  the  Eperumei,  or  people  of  Manoa,  and  by 
their  aid  make  an  easy  conquest  of  them.  The  old 
chief  added,  that,  for  his  part  and  his  people's,  they 
wanted  no  share  of  the  spoils  of  gold  or  precious 
stones  :  they  only  wanted  to  be  avenged  on  their  ene- 
mies, and  to  rescue  from  them  their  women  whom  the 
Eperumei  had  carried  away  in  their  frequent  incur- 
sions ;  "  so  that,  whereas  they  were  wont  to  have  ten 
or  twelve  wives  apiece,  they  were  now  enforced  to 
content  themselves  with  three  or  four." 

Raleigh  met  with  no  material  misadventure  in  his 
way  down  the  river ;  and,  though  a  storm  attacked 
them  the  same  night,  they  anchored  inrthe  mouth  of 
the  river ;  so  that,  in  spite  of  every  shelter  they  could 
derive  from  the  shores,  the  galley  "  had  as  much  to 
do  to  live  as  could  be,  and  there  wanted  little  of  her 
sinking,  and  all  those  in  her :  "  yet  next  day  they 


RALEIGH'S  FIRST  EXPEDITION.  303 

arrived  safe  at  the  Island  of  Trinidad,  and  found  the 
ships  at  anchor,  "  than  which,"  says  Raleigh,  "  there 
was  never  to  us  a  more  joyful  sight." 

Raleigh  was  not  favorably  received  by  the  queen 
on  his  return,  nor  was  he  welcomed  with  any  popular 
applause  ;  for  he  had  brought  home  no  boot}T,  and  his 
account  of  the  riches  of  the  land  into  which  he  had 
led  the  way  was  received  with  suspicion.  He  pub- 
lished it  under  this  boastful  title :  "  The  Discovery 
of  the  large,  rich,  and  beautiful  Empire  of  Guiana ; 
with  a  relation  of  the  great  and  Golden  City  of  Manoa, 
which  the  Spaniards  call  Eldorado.  Performed  by 
Sir  Walter  Raleigh."  In  spite  of  all  the  great  prom- 
ises which  he  held  out,  the  acknowledgment  that  he 
had  made  a  losing  voyage  tended  to  abate  that  spirit 
of  cupidity  and  enterprise  which  he  wished  to  excite. 

Sir  Walter's  history  of  his  expedition  contains,  be- 
cides  the  marvels  already  cited,  numerous  others,  some 
of  which  have  a  basis  of  fact,  others  not.  Of  the  for- 
mer kind  is  his  account  of  oysters  growing  on  trees. 
He  says,  "  We  arrived  at  Trinidado  the  22d  of  March, 
casting  anchor  at  Port  Curiapan.  I  left  the  ships,  and 
kept  by  the  shore  in  my  barge,  the  better  to  under- 
stand the  rivers,  watering-places,  and  ports  of  the 
island.  In  the  way,  I  passed  divers  little  brooks  of 


304  ELDORADO. 

fresh  water,  and  one  salt  river,  that  had  store  of  oys- 
ters upon  the  branches  of  the  trees.  All  their  oys- 
ters grow  upon  those  boughs  and  sprays,  and  not  on 
the  ground.  The  like  is  commonly  seen  in  the  West 
Indies  and  elsewhere." 

Upon  this  narrative,  Sir  Robert  Schomburgh,  a  late 
explorer,  has  the  following  remark :  "  The  first  ac- 
counts brought  to  Europe,  of  oysters  growing  on  trees, 
raised  as  great  astonishment  as  the  relation  of  Eldo-  . 
rado  itself;  and  to  those  who  were  unacquainted  with 
the  fact  that  these  mollusks  select  the  branches  of 
the  tree,  on  which  they  fix  themselves  during  high 
water,  when  the  branches  are  immersed,  it  may  cer- 
tainly sound  strange,  that  shells,  which  we  know  live 
in  Europe  on  banks  in  the  depths  of  the  sea,  should 
be  found  in  the  West  Indies  on  the  branches  of  trees. 
They  attach  themselves  chiefly  to  the  mangrove-tree, 
which  grows  along  the  shore  of  the  sea,  and  rivers  of 
brackish  water,  and  covers  immense  tracts  of  coast ; 
rooting  and  vegetating  in  a  manner  peculiar  to  itself, 
even  as  far  as  low-water  mark.  The  water  flowing 
off  during  ebb  leaves  the  branches,  with  the  oysters 
attached  to  them,  high  and  dry." 

Respecting  the   Republic  of  Amazons,  Sir  Walter 
says,  "  I  made  inquiry  among  the  most  ancient  and 


RALEIGH'S  FIRST  EXPEDITION.  305 

best  travelled  of  the  Orenoqueponi ;  and  I  was  very 
desirous  to  understand  the  truth  of  those  warlike 
women,  because  of  some  it  is  believed,  of  others  not. 
I  will  set  down  what  hath  been  delivered  me  for 
truth  of  those  women ;  and  I  spake  with  a  cacique, 
or  lord  of  people,  who  said  that  he  had  been  in  the 
river,  and  beyond  it  also.  The  nations  of  those  women 
are  on  the  south  side  of  the  river,  in  the  province  of 
Topago ;  and  their  chiefest  strengths  and  retreats 
are  in  the  islands  of  said  river.  They  accompany 
with  men  but  once  in  a  year,  and  for  the  time  of  one 
month,  which,  I  gather  from  their  relation,  to  be  in 
April.  At  that  time,  all  the  kings  of  the  borders  as- 
semble, and  the  queens  of  the  Amazons ;  and,  after 
the  queens  have  chosen,  the  rest  cast  lots  for  their 
valentines.  This  one  month  they  feast,  dance,  and 
drink  of  their  wines  in  abundance ;  and,  the  moon 
being  done,-  they  all  depart  to  their  own  provinces. 
If  a  son  be  born,  they  return  him  to  the  father ;  if  a 
daughter,  they  nourish  it  and  retain  it,  all  being  desi- 
rous to  increase  their  own  sex  and  kind.  They  carry 
on  wars,  and  are  very  blood-thirsty  and  cruel." 

Sir  Robert   Schomburgh,  who  explored  these  re- 
gions   extensively    between     the    years    1835   and 
1844,    says,  in  reference  to    this  subject,  "  The  re- 
20 


306  ELDORADO. 

suit  of  this  fatiguing  and  perilous  journey  has  only 
strengthened  our  conviction  that  this  republic  of 
women  was  one  of  those  inventions,  designed  merely 
to  enhance  the  wonders,  of  which  the  new  world  was 
regarded  as  the  seat.  It  would,  however,  be  unjust 
to  condemn  Raleigh's  proneness  to  a  belief  in  their 
existence,  when  we  find  that  Condamine  believed  in 
them ;  that  Humboldt  hesitated  to  decide  against 
them ;  and  that  even  Southey,  the  learned  historian 
of  Brazil,  makes  this  remark,  "  Had  we  never  heard 
of  the  Amazons  of  antiquity,  I  should,  without  hesita- 
tion, believe  in  those  of  America.  Their  existence  is 
not  the  less  likely  for  that  reason ;  and  yet  it  must  be 
admitted,  that  the-  probable  truth  is  made  to  appear 
suspicious  by  its  resemblance  to  a  known  fable." 


CHAPTER  VI. 

RALEIGH'S  ADVENTURES  CONTINUED. 

TTTHEN  Raleigh,  on  his  first  arrival,  broke  up  the 
Spanish  settlement  in  Trinidad,  he  took  Berrio, 
the  governor,  prisoner,  and  carried  him  with  him  in 
his  voyage  up  the  river.  Berrio  seems  to  have  borne 
his  fate  with  good  temper,  and  conciliated  the  good 
will  of  Raleigh ;  so  that,  when  the  expedition  returned 
to  the  mouth  of  the  river,  he  was  set  at  liberty,  and 
collected  his  little  colony  again.  Berrio  probably 
shared  the  same  belief  as  Raleigh  in  the  existence  of 
the  kingdom  of  Eldorado  within  the  limits  of  his 
province,  and  was  naturally  desirous  to  avail  himself 
of  the  respite  which  he  gained  by  the  termination  of 
Raleigh's  expedition,  until  it  should  return  in  greater 
force  to  penetrate  to  Eldorado,  and  take  possession 
for  himself  and  his  countrymen.  With  these  views, 
he  sent  an  officer  of  his,  Domingo  de  Vera,  to  Spain, 
to  levy  men ;  sending,  according  to  Raleigh's  account, 

sor 


308  ELDORADO. 

"  divers  images,  as  well  of  men  as  of  beasts,  birds,  and 
fishes,  cunningly  wrought  in  gold,"  in  hopes  to  per- 
suade the  king  to  yield  him  some  further  help.  This 
agent  was  more  successful  than  Raleigh  in  obtaining 
belief.  He  is  described  as  a  man  of  great  ability,  and 
little  scrupulous  as  to  truth.  Having  been  favorably 
received  by  the  government,  he  attracted  notice  by 
appearing  in  a  singular  dress,  which,  as  he  was  of 
great  stature,  and  rode  always  a  great  horse,  drew  all 
eyes,  and  made  him  generally  known  as  the  Indian 
chief  of  Eldorado  and  the  rich  lands.  Some  trinkets 
in  gold  he  displayed,  of  Indian  workmanship,  and  some 
emeralds,  which  he  had  brought  from  America,  and 
promised  stores  of  both ;  and,  by  the  aid  of  influential 
persons,  he  obtained  seventy  thousand  dollars  at  Ma- 
drid, and  five  thousand  afterwards  at  Seville,  authority 
to  raise  any  number  of  adventurers  (though  Berrio 
had  asked  only  for  three  hundred  men),  and  five  good 
ships  to  carry  them  out.  Adventurers  flocked  to  him 
in  Toledo,  La  Mancha,  and  Estremadura.  The  expedi- 
tion was  beyond  example  popular.  Twenty  captains 
of  infantry,  who  had  served  in  Italy  and  Flanders, 
joined  it.  Not  only  those  who  had  their  fortunes  to 
seek  were  deluded:  men  of  good  birth  and  expec- 
tations left  all  -to  engage  in  the  conquest  of  Eldora- 


RALEIGH'S  ADVENTURES  CONTINUED.  309 

do ;  and  fathers  of  families  gave  up  their  employments, 
and  sold  their  goods,  and  embarked  with  their  wives 
and  children.  Solicitations  and  bribes  were  made  use 
of  by  eager  volunteers.  The  whole  expedition  con- 
sisted of  more  than  two  thousand  persons. 

They  reached  Trinidad  after  a  prosperous  voyage, 
and  took  possession  of  the  town.  The  little  mischief 
which  Raleiglrhad  done  had  been  easily  repaired  ;  for 
indeed  there  was  little  that  he  could  do.  The  place 
did  not  contain  thirty  families,  and  the  strangers  were 
to  find  shelter  as  they  could.  Rations  of  biscuit  and 
salt  meat,  pulse,  or  rice,  were  served  out  to  them ;  but, 
to  diminish  the  consumption  as  much  as  possible,  de- 
tachments were  sent  off  in  canoes  to  the  main  land, 
where  Berrio  had  founded  the  town  of  St.  Thomas. 
Some  flotillas  effected  their  progress  safely ;  but  one, 
which  consisted  of  six  canoes,  met  with  bad  weather, 
and  only  three  succeeded  in  entering  the  river,  after 
throwing  their  cargoes  overboard.  The  others  made 
the  nearest  shore,  where  they  were  descried  by  the 
Caribs,  a  fierce  tribe  of  natives,  who  slew  them  all, 
except  a  few  women  whom  they  carried  away,  and 
one  soldier,  who  escaped  to  relate  the  fate  of  his  com- 
panions. 

The  city  of  St.  Thomas  contained  at  that  time  four 


310  ELDORADO. 

hundred  men,  besides  women  and  children.  Berrio, 
to  prepare  the  way  for  the  discovery  and  conquest  of 
Eldorado,  sent  out  small  parties  of  the  new-comers 
under  experienced  persons,  that  they  might  be  sea- 
soned to  the  difficulties  which  they  would  have  to  un- 
dergo, and  learn  how  to  conduct  themselves  in  their 
intercourse  with  the  Indians.  They  were  to  spread 
the  news  that  the  king  had  sent  out  nfany  Spaniards, 
and  a  large  supply  of  axes,  caps,  hawk-bells,  looking- 
glasses,  combs,  and  such  other  articles  of  traffic  as 
were  in  most  request.  They  saw  no  appearance  of 
those  riches  which  Raleigh  had  heard  of,  nor  of  that 
plenty  which  he  had  found.  The  people  with  whom 
they  met  had  but  a  scanty  subsistence  for  themselves, 
and  so  little  of  gold  or  silver  or  any  thing  else  to  bar- 
ter for  the  hatchets  and  trinkets  of  the  Spaniards, 
that  they  were  glad  of  the  chance  to  labor  as  boat- 
men, or  give  their  children,  in  exchange  for  them. 

Berrio  was  not  discouraged  by  the  result  of  these 
journeys.  Like  Raleigh,  he  was  persuaded  that  the 
great  and  golden  city  stood  on  the  banks  of  a  great 
lake,  from  which  the  River  Caroli  issued,  about  twelve 
leagues  east  of  the  mouth  whereof  his  town  was 
placed.  A  force  of  eight  hundred  men  was  now 
ordered  on  the  discovery.  The  command  was  given 


EALEIGITS  ADVENTURES  CONTINUED.  311 

to  Correa,  an  officer  accustomed  to  Indian  warfare. 
Three  Franciscan  monks,  and  a  lay  brother  of  the 
same  order,  accompanied  the  expedition.  Having 
reached  a  spot  where  the  country  was  somewhat 
elevated,  and  the  temperature  cooler  than  in  the  re- 
gion they  had  passed,  they  hutted  themselves  on  a 
sort  of  prairie,  and  halted  there  in  the  hope  that  rest 
might  restore  those  who  began  to  feel  the  effect  of  an 
unwholesome  climate.  The  natives  not  only  abstained 
from  any  acts  of  hostility,  but  supplied  them  with 
fruits,  and  a  sort  of  cassava  (tapioca).  This  they  did 
in  sure  knowledge  that  disease  would  soon  subdue 
these  new-come  Spaniards  to  their  hands.  It  was  not 
long  before  a  malignant  fever  broke  out  among  the 
adventurers,  which  carried  off  a  third  part  of  their 
number.  One  comfort  only  was  left  them :  the  friars 
continued  every  day  to  perform  mass  in  a  place  where 
all  the  sufferers  could  hear  it;  and  no  person  died 
without  performing  and  receiving  all  the  offices  which 
the  Romish  Church  has  enjoined.  Correa  himself 
sank  under  the  disease.  He  might  possibly  have  es- 
caped it,  acclimated  as  he  was,  if  he  had  not  over- 
tasked himself  when  food  was  to  be  sought  from  a 
distance,  and  carried  heavy  loads  to  spare  "those  who 
were  less  equal  to  the  labor :  for  now  the  crafty  In- 


312  ELDORADO. 

dians  no  longer  brought  supplies,  but  left  the  weak- 
ened  Spaniards  to  provide  for  themselves  as  they 
could  ;  and  when  Correa  was  dead,  of  whom,  as  a  man 
accustomed  to  Indian  war,  they  stood  in  fear,  they 
collected  their  forces,  and  fell  upon  the.  Spaniards, 
who  apprehended  no  danger,  and  were  most  of  them 
incapable  of  making  any  defence.  The  plan  appears 
to  have  been  concerted  with  a  young  Indian  chief 
who  accompanied  the  Spaniards  under  pretence  of 
friendship ;  and  the  women  whom  the  Indians  brought 
with  them  to  carry  home  the  spoils  of  their  enemies 
bore  their  part  with  stones  and  stakes  in  the  easy 
slaughter.  The  Spaniards  who  escaped  the  first  at- 
tack fled  with  all  speed,  some  without  weapons,  and 
some  without  strength  to  use  them.  The  friars  were 
the  last  to  fly.  With  the  soldiers  to  protect  them, 
they  brought  off  their  portable  altar,  two  crosses,  and 
a  crucifix.  No  attempt  at  resistance  was  made,  ex- 
cept when  a  fugitive  fell  by  the  way.  The  word  then 
passed  for  one  of  the  fathers:  some  soldiers  stood 
with  their  muskets  to  protect  him  while  he  hastily 
confessed  and  absolved  the  poor  wretch,  whom  his 
countrymen  then  commended  to  God,  and  left  to  the 
mercy  of  the  Indians. 

In  some  places,  the  enemy  set  fire  to  the  grass  and 


RALEIGH'S  ADVENTURES  CONTINUED.  313 

shrubbery,  which  in  that  climate  grow  with  extreme 
luxuriance ;  by  which  means  many  of  this  miserable 
expedition  perished.  Not  quite  thirty  out  of  the 
whole  number  got  safe  back  to  the  town  of  St.  Thomas. 
That  place  was  in  a  deplorable  state,  suffering  at  once 
from  a  contagious  disease  and  from  a  scarcity  of  pro- 
visions. To  add  to  the  distress,  about  a  hundred  per- 
sons more  had  just  arrived  from  Trinidad.  They 
came  of  necessity ;  for  there  were  no  longer  supplies 
of  food  at  Trinidad  to  sustain  them.  But  they  came 
with  high-raised  hopes,  only  repining  at  their  ill  luck 
in  not  having  been  in  the  first  expedition,  by  which 
they  supposed  the  first  spoils  of  Eldorado  had  already 
been  shared.  They  arrived  like  skeletons  at  a  city  of 
death.  Not  only  were  provisions  scarce,  but  the  sup- 
ply of  salt  had  altogether  failed  ;  and,  without  it,  health 
in  that  climate  cannot  be  preserved.  To  add  to  their 
misery,  the  shoes  had  all  been  consumed,  and  the 
country  was  infested  by  that  insect  (the  chigua) 
which  burrows  in  the  feet,  and  attacks  the  flesh 
wherever  the  slightest  wound  gives  it  access.  The 
torment  occasioned  by  these  insects  was  such,  that 
the  men  willingly  submitted  to  the  only  remedy  they 
knew  of,  and  had  the  sores  cauterized  with  hot  iron. 
Among  those  who  had  come  from  Spain  to  enter 


314  ELDORADO. 

upon  this  land  of  promise,  there  was  a  "  beata,"  or 
pious  woman,  who  had  been  attached  to  a  convent  in 
Madrid,  and  accompanied  a  married  daughter  and  her 
husband  on  this  unhappy  adventure;  and  devoted  her- 
self to  the  service  of  the  sick.  Some  of  the  women, 
and  she  among  them,  looking  upon  the  governor, 
Berrio,  as  the  cause  of  their  miseries,  and  thinking, 
that,  as  long  as  he  lived,  there  was  no  hope  of  their 
escaping  from  this  fatal  place,  resolved  to  murder 
him,  and  provided  themselves  with  knives  for  the 
purpose.  The  indignation  against  him  was  so  gene- 
ral, that  they  hesitated  not  to  impart  their  design  to 
one  of  the  friars  ;  and,  luckily  for  Berrio,  he  interposed 
his  influence  to  prevent  it.  One  of  the  women  who 
had  sold  her  possessions  in  Spain  to  join  the  expedi- 
tion made  her  way  to  the  governor  when  the  officers 
and  friars  were  with  him,  and,  emptying  upon  the 
ground  before  him  a  bag  which  contained  one  hun- 
dred and  fifty  doubloons,  said,  "  Tyrant,  take  what  is 
left,  since  you  have  brought  us  here  to  die."  Berrio 
replied,  with  less  of  anger  than  of  distress  in  his  coun- 
tenance, "  I  gave  no  orders  to  Domingo  de  Vera  that 
he  should  bring  more  than  three  hundred  men.7'  He 
offered  no  opposition  to  the  departure  of  such  as 
would.  Many  who  had  strength  or  resolution  enough 


EALEIGirS  ADVENTURES  CONTINUED.  315 

trusted  themselves  to  the  river  in  such  canoes  as 
they  could  find,  without  boatmen  or  pilot,  and  en- 
deavored to  make  their  way  back  to  Trinidad ;  some 
perishing  by  the  hands  of  the  natives,  others  by 
drowning,  others  by  hunger,  on  the  marshy  shores 
which  they  reached.  Yera  soon  died  of  a  painful  dis- 
ease in  Trinidad ;  and  Berrio  did  not  long  survive 
him.  Such  was  the  issue  of  this  great  attempt  for 
the  conquest  of  the  golden  empire  ;  "  of  which,"  says 
an  old  Spanish  historian,  "  it  may  be  said,  that  it  was 
like  Nebuchadnezzar's  image,  beginning  in  gold,  but 
continuing  through  baser  metal,  till  it  ended  in  rude 
iron  and  base  clay." 


CHAPTER    VII. 

RALEIGH'S  SECOND  EXPEDITION. 

T)  ALEIGH'S  first  voyage  disappointed  every  one 
but  himself.  He  pretended  to  have  obtained 
satisfactory  evidence  of  the  existence  of  Eldorado, 
and  information  of  the  place  where  it  was ;  also  proof 
of  the  existence  of  mines  of  gold  ;  and  to  have  concili- 
ated the  good  will  of  the  natives,  and  secured  their 
co-operation  with  him  in  any  future  attempt.  But  he 
had  brought  home  no  gold ;  the  shining  stones  which 
his  followers  had  abundantly  supplied  themselves 
with  were  found  to  be  worthless :  and  there  was  no 
evidence  of  the  existence  of  a  native  sovereignty  as 
far  advanced  in  civilization  and  refinement  as  the 
Mexicans  and  Peruvians,  the  conquest  of  which 
would  reflect  as  much  glory  upon  the  English  name 
as  the  achievements  of  Cortez  and  Pizarro  had  re- 
flected upon  that  of  Spain.  Raleigh's  boastful  repre- 
sentations, therefore,  failed  of  effect.  None  of  his 

316 


RALEIGH'S  SECOND  EXPEDITION.  317 

countrymen  were  inclined  to  join  with  him  in  a  fur- 
ther prosecution  of  the  enterprise ;  and  the  subject 
was  dropped  for  the  time. 

Raleigh  was  soon  restored  to  favor,  and  employed 
in  the  naval  expeditions  against  Spain  which  took 
place  at  this  time.  He  greatly  distinguished  himself 
on  several  occasions,  and  was  in  high  favor  with 
Queen  Elizabeth  till  her  death ;  but,  with  the  ac- 
cession of  James,  his  fortunes  fell.  He  was  accused 
(whether  justly  or  not  is  still  doubtful)  of  being  con- 
cerned in  treasonable  plots  against  the  king,  and  was 
brought  to  trial,  found  guilty,  condemned  to  death, 
and  committed  prisoner  to  the  Tower  to  await  the 
execution  of  his  sentence. 

Raleigh,  withdrawn  from  active  labors  by  his  im- 
prisonment, was  not  idle.  He  turned  to  intellectual 
pursuits,  and,  with  many  minor  pieces  in  prose  and 
verse,  executed  his  greatest  work,  "  The  History  of 
the  World,"  — a  project  of  such  vast  extent,  that  the 
bare  idea  of  his  undertaking  it  excites  our  admiration. 
As  an  author,  he  stands  on  an  eminence  as  high  as 
that  which  he  obtained  in  other  paths.  Hume  says, 
"  He  is  the  best  model  of  our  ancient  style  ;  "  and  Hal- 
lam  confirms  the  judgment.  His  imprisonment  lasted 
thirteen  years.  At  the  expiration  of  that  time,  he 


318  ELDORADO. 

had  influence  to  have  his  sentence  so  far  remitted  as 
to  allow  him  to  go  on  a  second  expedition  in  search 
of  Eldorado.  Twenty  years  had  elapsed  since  the 
former  expedition ;  and  the  present  was  of  a  magni- 
tude more  like  a  national  enterprise  than  a  private 
one.  Sir  Walter's  own  ship,  "  The  Destiny,"  carried 
thirty-six  guns  and  two  hundred  men.  There  were 
six  other  vessels,  carrying  from  twenty-five  guns  to 
three  each.  Raleigh  embarked  all  his  means  in  this 
expedition.  His  eldest  son  commanded  one  of  the 
ships  ;  and  eighty  of  his  companions  were  gentlemen 
volunteers  and  adventurers,  many  of  them  his  rela- 
tions. 

Those  who  have  thoughtfully  considered  Raleigh's 
career  have  seen  reason  to  doubt  whether  he  really 
believed  the  stories  which  he  was  so  anxious  to  im- 
press upon  others.  They  have  thought  it  more  likely 
that  his  real  object  was  to  emulate  the  fame  of  Cor- 
tez  and  Pizarro ;  to  dispossess  Spain  of  some  por- 
tion of  her  conquests  in  South  America,  and  transfer 
them  to  his  own  country.  This  latter  object  was  ad- 
missible at  the  time  of  his  first  expedition,  because 
Spain  and  England  were  then  at  war ;  but  was  not 
so  on  the  second,  as  the  two  nations  were  then  at 
peace.  But  Raleigh  had  reason  to  think,  that,  if  he 


RALEIGH'S  SECOND  EXPEDITION.  319 

could  succeed  in  his  object,  there  was  no  danger  of 
his  being  called  to  very  strict  account  respecting  his 
measures. 

He  arrived  off  the  coast  of  Guiana  on  the  12th  of 
November,  1617;  having  had  a  long  and  disastrous 
voyage.  One  ship  had  left  him,  and  returned  home  ; 
another  had  foundered  ;  forty-two  of  his  men  had  died ; 
many  were  suffering  from  sickness,  and  himself  among 
the  number.  But  he  found  the  Indians  friendly,  and 
not  forgetful  of  his  former  visit.  He  writes  to  his 
wife,  "  To  tell  you  that.  I  might  be  here  king  of  the 
country  were  a  vanity ;  but  my  name  hath  still  lived 
among  them  here.  They  feed  me  with  fresh  meat, 
and  all  that  the  country  yields.  All  offer  to  obey 
me.'7 

Being  too  feeble  from  sickness  to  go  himself,  he 
sent  forward  an  expedition,  under  Capt.  Keymis,  to 
enter  the  Orinoco,  and  take  possession  of  the  mines. 
Five  companies  of  fifty  men  each,  in  five  shallops, 
composed  the  expedition ;  Raleigh,  with  the  remain- 
der of  his  vessels,  repairing  to  Trinidad  to  await  the 
result. 

Since  Raleigh's  former  expedition,  the  Spaniards 
had  made  a  settlement  upon  the  main  land,  and 
founded  a  town  to  which  they  gave  the  name  of  St. 


320  ELDORADO. 

Thomas.  The  governor  resided  there,  and  there  were 
in  all  about  five  hundred  inhabitants.  On  the  12th 
of  January,  the  English  flotilla  reached  a  part  of  the 
river  twelve  leagues  from  St.  Thomas  ;  and  an  Indian 
fisherman  carried  the  alarm  to  that  place.  The  gov- 
ernor, Palameque,  mustered  immediately  the  little 
force  which  he  had  at  hand.  This  consisted  of  fifty- 
seven  men  only.  Messengers  were  sent  to  summon 
those  men  who  were  at  their  farms,  and  two  horse- 
men were  sent  out  to  watch  the  invaders'  movements. 
At  eleven  in  the  forenoon,  the  vessels  anchored 
about  a  league  from  the  town.  The  men  landed,  and 
the  scouts  hastened  back  with  the  intelligence.  A 
Spanish  officer,  with  ten  men,  was  placed  in  ambush 
near  the  city.  As  soon  as  he  was  informed  of  the 
direction  which  the  English  were  taking,  he  cut  a 
match-cord  in  pieces,  which  he  lighted  at  dark,  and 
placed  at  intervals,  where  they  might  deceive,  the  in- 
vaders by  presenting  the  appearance  of  a  greater 
force.  The  first  discharge  was  from  two  pieces  of 
cannon  against  the  boats.  The  Spaniard,  with  his 
little  band,  then  opened  his  fire  upon  the  troops,  and 
kept  it  up  from  the  bushes  as  he  retired  before  them. 
This  skirmishing  continued  about  an  hour  and  a  half, 
till  he  had  fallen  back  to  the  place  where  the  gov- 


RALEIGH'S  SECOND  EXPEDITION.  321 

ernor  and  bis  people  were  drawn  up,  at  the  entrance 
of  the  city,  to  make  a  stand.  It  was  now  nine  at 
night.  Raleigh  says,  in  his  account  of  the  action, 
that  some  of  the  English,  at  the  first  charge,  began  to 
pause  and  recoil  shamefully  ;  whereupon  his  son,  not 
tarrying  for  any  musketeers,  ran  up  at  the  head  of  a 
company  of  pikemen,  and  received  a  shot  wound. 
Pressing  then  upon  a  Spanish  captain  with  his  sword, 
the  Spaniard,  taking  the  small  end  of  his  musket  in 
his  hand,  struck  him  on  the  head  with  the  stock,  and 
felled  him.  His  last  words  were,  "  Lord,  have  mercy 
upon  me,  and  prosper  the  enterprise  !  "  and  his  death 
was  instantly  avenged  by  his  sergeant,  who  thrust 
the  Spaniard  through  with  his  halberd.  In  the  heat 
of  the  fight,  and  in  the  confusion  which  the  darkness 
occasioned,  the  Spanish  commander  was  separated 
from  his  people,  and  slain.  The  Spaniards,  however, 
had  the  advantage  of  knowing  the  ground  ;  and,  betak- 
ing themselves  to  the  houses,  they  fired  from  them  on 
the  English,  and  killed  many,  till  the  assailants  set 
fire  to  the  houses ;  thus  depriving  themselves  of  that 
booty  which  was  their  main  object.  The  English 
were  now  masters  of  the  place;  the  remainder  of  the 
defendants,  with  the  women  and  children,  under  the 
command  of  Grades,  the  officer  who  had  deported 
21 


322  ELDORADO. 

himself  so  well  in  the  first  ambush,  effecting  their 
escape  across  the  river.  Grades  stationed  them  at  a 
place  about  ten  miles  distant  from  the  town,  where  a 
few  slight  huts  were  erected  for  the  women  and  chil- 
dren. 

The  captors  searched  in  vain  for  gold  in  the  city ; 
but  they  had  an  idea  that  there  was  a  rich  gold-mine 
a  short  distance  up  the  river.  Accordingly,  two 
launches,  with  twenty  or  thirty  men  in  each,  were 
despatched  up  the  Orinoco.  They  came  to  the  mouth 
of  the  creek,  which  led  to  the  place  where  Grades 
had  hutted  the  women  and  children  ;  and  the  largest 
of  the  launches  was  about  to  enter,  when  Grades, 
who  had  posted  nine  of  the  invalids  in  ambush  there, 
with  about  as  many  Indian  bowmen,  fired  upon  them 
so  unexpectedly,  and  with  such  good  aim,  that  only 
one  of  the  crew  is  said  to  have  escaped  unhurt.  The 
other  launch  also  suffered  some  loss.  Three  days  af- 
ter, three  launches  were  sent  to  take  vengeance  for 
this  defeat ;  but  Grades  had  removed  his  charge  some 
two  leagues  into  the  country,  and  these  vessels  went 
up  the  river  about  a  hundred  leagues,  treating  with 
the  Indians,  to  whom  they  made  presents  and  larger 
promises,  and  after  eighteen  or  twenty  days  returned, 
having  effected  nothing  of  importance. 


RALEIGH'S  SECOND  EXPEDITION.  323 

The  Englisji  had  now  been  four  weeks  in  the  city, 
annoyed  by  the  Spaniards  and  Indians,  and  losing 
many  of  their  men,  cut  off  in  their  foraging  excursions 
by  ambushes.  After  the  unsuccessful  attempt  to  dis- 
cover the  mine,  no  further  effort  was  made  for  that 
purpose ;  Keymis  alleging  in  his  excuse,  that  "  the 
Spaniards,  being  gone  off  in  a  whole  body,  lay  in  the 
woods  between  the  mine  and  us,  and  it  was  impossi- 
ble, except  they  had  been  beaten  out  of  the  country, 
to  pass  up  the  woods  and  craggy  hills  without  the 
loss  of  the  commanders,  without  whom  the  rest  would 
easily  be  cut  to  pieces."  The  English,  accordingly, 
retreated  from  the  city,  setting  fire  to  the  few  houses 
that  remained,  and  promising  the  Indians,  as  they 
went,  that  they  would  return  next  year,  and  complete 
the  destruction  of  the  Spaniards. 

Raleigh  was  by  no  means  satisfied  with  Keymis's 
excuses  for  his  failure  to  discover  the  mine,  and  re- 
proached him  with  so  much  severity,  that  Keymis, 
after  the  interview,  retired  to  his  cabin,  and  shot  him- 
self through  the  heart. 

When  Raleigh  arrived  in  England,  he  found  that 
the  tidings  of  his  attack  on  the  Spaniards,  and  the 
utter  failure  of  his  expedition,  had  reached  there  be- 
fore him.  The  Spanish  ambassador  was  clamorous 


324  ELDORADO.  +• 

for  pnnishment  on  what  he  called  a  piratical  proceed- 
ing; and  the  king  and  the  nation,  who  might  have 
pardoned  a  successful  adventurer,  had  no  indulgence 
to  extend  to  one  so  much  the  reverse.  Finding  a 
proclamation  had  been  issued  for  his  arrest,  Raleigh 
endeavored  to  escape  to  France,  but  was  taken  in  the 
attempt,  and  committed  close  prisoner  to  the  Tower. 
He  was  made  a  victim  to  court  intrigue.  The  weak 
king,  James,  was  then  negotiating  a  Spanish  match 
for  his  sou,  and,  to  gratify  the  King  of  Spain  and  his 
court,  sacrificed  one  of  the  noblest  of  his  subjects. 
Without  being  put  on  trial  for  his  late  transactions, 
Raleigh's  old  sentence,  which  had  been  suspended 
sixteen  years,  was  revived  against  him ;  and  on  the 
29th  of  October,  1618,  four  months  after  his  arrival, 
he  was  beheaded  on  the  scaffold. 

The  fate  of  Raleigh  caused  a  great  sensation  at  the 
time,  and  has  not  yet  ceased  to  excite  emotion.  The 
poet  Thomson,  in  his  "  Summer,"  finely  alludes  to  the 
various  circumstances  of  his  history,  which  we  have 
briefly  recorded :  — 

"  But  who  can  speak 

The  numerous  worthies  of  the  '  Maiden  reign  '  ? 
In  Raleigh  mark  their  every  glory  mixed,  — 
Raleigh,  the  scourge  of  Spain,  whose  breast  with  all 
The  sage,  the  patriot,  and  the  hero,  burned. 


RALEIGH'S  SECOND  EXPEDITION.  325 

Nor  sunk  his  vigor  when  a  coward  reign 
The  warrior  fettered,  and  at  last  resigned 
To  glut  the  vengeance  of  a  vanquished  foe : 
Then,  active  still  and  unrestrained,  his  mind 
Explored  the  vast  extent  of  ages  past, 
And  with  his  prison-hours  enriched  the  world ; 
Yet  found  no  times  in  all  the  long  research 
So  glorious  or  so  base  as  those  he  proved 
In  which  he  conquered  and  in  which  he  bled." 


CHAPTER    VIII. 

THE   FRENCH   PHILOSOPHERS. 

A  FTER  so  many  abortive  attempts  to  reach  the 
Golden  Empire,  the  ardor  of  research  greatly 
abated.  No  expeditions,  composed  of  considerable 
numbers,  have  since  embarked  in  the  enterprise  ;  but 
from  time  to  time,  for  the  century  succeeding  Ra- 
leigh's last  attempt,  private  expeditions  were  under- 
taken and  encouraged  by  provincial  governors ;  and 
several  hundred  persons  perished  miserably  in  those 
fruitless  endeavors. 

The  adventure  we  are  now  about  to  record  was  of 
an  entirely  different  character  in  respect  to  its  ob- 
jects and  the  means  employed  ;  but  it  occupied  the 
same  field  of  action,  and  called  into  exercise  the  same 
qualities  of  courage  and  endurance. 

In  1735,  the  French  Academy  of  Science  made 
arrangements  for  sending  out  two  commissions  of 
learned  men  to  different  and  distant  parts  of  the 

326 


THE  FRENCH  PHILOSOPHERS.  327 

world  to  make  measurements,  with  a  view  to  deter- 
mining the  dimensions  and  figure  of  the  earth.  The 

great   astronomer,  Sir   Isaac  Newton,   had  deduced 

^ 

from  theory,  and  ventured  to  maintain,  that  the  earth 
was  not  a  perfect  globe,  but  a  spheroid ;  that  is,  a 
globe  flattened  at  the  poles.  For  a  long  time  after 
Newton's  splendid  discoveries  in  astronomy,  a  degree 
of  national  jealousy  prevented  the  French  philoso- 
phers from  accepting  his  conclusions  ;  and  they  were 
not  displeased  to  find,  when  they  could,  facts  opposed 
to  them.  Now,  there  were  some  supposed  facts  which 
were  incompatible  with  this  idea  of  Newton's,  that 
the  earth  was  flattened  at  the  poles.  The  point  was 
capable  of  being  demonstrated  by  measurements,  with 
instruments,  on  the  surface  ;  for,  if  his  theory  was  true, 
a  degree  of  latitude  would  be  longer  in  the  northern 
parts  of  the  globe  than  in  the  regions  about  the  equa- 
tor. 

We  must  not  allow  our  story  to  become  a  scientific 
essay  ;  and  yet  we  should  like  to  give  our  readers,  if 
we  could,  some  idea  of  the  principle  on  which  this 
process,  which  is  called  the  measurement  of  an  arc  of 
the  meridian,  was  expected  to  show  the  magnitude 
and  form  of  the  earth.  We  all  know  that  geographi- 
cal latitude  means  the  position  of  places  north  or 


328  *  ELDORADO. 

south  of  the  equator,  and  is  determined  by  reference 
to  the  north  or  pole  star.  A  person  south  of  the 
equator  would  not  see  the  pole-star  at  all.  One  at 
the  equator,  looking  at  the  pole-star,  would  see  it,  if 
no  intervening  object  prevented,  in  the  horizon.  Ad- 
vancing northward,  he  would  see  it  apparently  rise, 
and  advance  toward  him.  As  he  proceeded,  it  would 
continue  to  rise.  When  he  had  traversed  half  the 
distance  to  the  pole,  he  would  see  the  pole-star  about 
as  we  see  it  in  Boston  ;  that  is,  nearly  midway  between 
the  horizon  and  the  zenith  :  and,  when  he  had  reached 
the  pole,  he  would  see  the  pole-star  directly  over  his 
head.  Dividing  the  quarter  circle  which  the  star 
has  moved  through  into  ninety  parts,  we  say,  when 
the  star  has  ascended  one-ninetieth  part,  that  the  ob- 
server has  travelled  over  one  degree  of  latitude. 
When  the  observer  has  reached  Boston,  he  has  passed 
over  somewhat  more  than  forty-two  degrees,  and, 
when  he  has  reached  the  north-pole,  ninety  degrees, 
of  latitude.  Thus  we  measure  our  latitude  over  the 
earth's  surface  by  reference  to  a  circle  in  the  heav- 
ens ;  and,  because  the  portions  into  which  we  divide 
that  circle  are  equal,  we  infer  that  the  portions  of  the 
earth's  surface  which  correspond  to  them  are  equal. 
"This  would  be  true  if  the  earth  were  a  perfect  globe  : 


THE  FRENCH  PHILOSOPHERS.  329 

but  if  the  earth  be  a  spheroid,  as  Newton's  theory 
requires  it  to  be,  it  would  not  be  true  ;  for  that  por- 
tion of  the  earth's  surface  which  is  flattened  will  have 
less  curvature  than  that  which  is  not  so,  and  less  still 
than  that  portion  which  is  protuberant.  The  degrees 
of  least  curvature  will  be  longest,  and  those  of  great- 
est curvature  shortest ;  that  is,  one  would  have  to 
travel  farther  on  the  flattened  part  of  the  earth  to 
see  any  difference  in  the  position  of  the  north-star 

than  in  those  parts  where  the  curvature  is  greater. 

9 
So  a  degree  of  latitude  near  the  pole,  if  determined 

by  the  position  of  the  north-star,  would  be  found,  by 
actual  measurement,  to  be  longer  than  one  similarly 
determined  at  the  equator.  It  was  to  ascertain 
whether  the  fact  was  so  that  the  two  scientific  expe- 
ditions were  sent  out. 

The  party  which  was  sent  to  the  northern  regions 
travelled  over  snow  and  ice,  swamps  and  morasses, 
to  the  arctic  circle,  and  fixed  their  station  at  Tornea, 
in  Lapland.  The  frozen  surface  of  the  river  afforded 
them  a  convenient  level  for  fixing  what  is  called  by 
surveyors  the  base  line.  The  cold  was  so  intense, 
that  the  glass  froze  to  the  mouth  when  they  drank, 
and  the  metallic  measuring  rod  to  the  hand.  In  spite, 
however,  of  perils  and  discomforts,  they  persevered 


330  ELDORADO. 

in  their  task,  and  brought  back  careful  measurements 
of  a  degree  in  latitude  66°  north,  to  be  compared  with 
those  made  by  the  other  party  at  the  equator,  whose 
movements  we  propose  more  particularly  to  follow. 

Before  we  take  leave  of  the  northern  commission- 
ers, however,  we  will  mention  another  method  they 
took  of  demonstrating  the  same  fact.  If  the  earth  be 
depressed  at  the  poles,  it  must  follow  that  bodies  will 
weigh  heavier  there,  because  they  are  nearer  the 

centre  of  the  earth.     But  how  could  they  test  this 

• 
fact,  when  all  weights  would  be  increased  alike,  —  the 

pound  of  feathers  and  the  pound  of  lead  ?  The  ques- 
tion was  settled  by  observing  the  oscillation  of  a  pen- 
dulum. The  observers  near  the  pole  found  that  the 
pendulum  vibrated  faster  than  usual,  because,  being 
nearer  the  centre  of  the  earth,  the  attracting  power 
was  increased.  To  balance  this,  they  had  to  lengthen 
the  pendulum  ;  and  the  extent  to  which  they  had  to 
do  this  measured  the  difference  between  the  earth's 
diameter  at  the  poles,  and  that  in  the  latitude  from 
which  they  came. 

The  commissioners  who  were  sent  to  the  equatorial 
regions  were  Messrs.  Bouguer,  La  Condamine,  and 
Godin,  the  last  of  whom  was  accompanied  by  his  wife. 
Two  Spanish  officers,  Messrs.  Juan  and  De  Ulloa, 


THE  FRENCH  PHILOSOPHERS.  331 

joined  the  commission.  The  party  arrived  at  Quito 
in  June,  1736,  about  two  hundred  years  after  Gonzalo 
Pizarro  started  from  the  same  place  in  his  search  for 
Eldorado.  In  the  interval,  the  country  had  become 
nominally  Christian.  The  city  was  the  seat  of  a 
bishopric,  an  audience  royal,  and  other  courts  of 
justice  ;  contained  many  churches  and  convents,  and 
two  colleges.  But  the  population  was  almost  entirely 
composed  of  Indians,  who  lived  in  a  manner  but  very 
little  different  from  that  of  their  ancestors  at  the  time 
of  the  conquest.  Cue^a  was  the  place  next  in  impor- 
tance to  the  capital ;  and  there,  or  in  its  neighbor- 
hood, the  chief  labors  of  the  commission  were  trans- 
acted. They  were  conducted  under  difficulties  as 
great  as  those  of  their  colleagues  in  the  frozen  regions 
of  the  north,  but  of  a  different  sort.  The  inhabitants 
of  the  country  were  jealous  of  the  French  commis- 
sioners, and  supposed  them  to  be  either  heretics  or 
sorcerers,  and  to  have  come  in  search  of  gold-mines. 
Even  persons  connected  with  the  administration  em- 
ployed themselves  in  stirring  up  the  minds  of  the 
people,  till  at  last,  in  a  riotous  assemblage  at  a  bull- 
fight, the  surgeon  of  the  French  commissioners  was 
killed.  After  tedious  and  troublesome  legal  proceed- 
ings, the  perpetrators  were  let  off  with  a  nominal 


332  ELDORADO. 

punishment.  Notwithstanding  every  difficulty,  the 
commissioners  completed  their  work  in  a  satisfactory 
manner,  spending  in  all  eight  years  in  the  task,  in- 
cluding the  voyages  out  and  home. 

The  commissioners  who  had  made  the  northern 
measurements  reported  the  length  of  the  degree  at 
66°  north  latitude  to  be  57.422  toises  ;  Messrs.  Bou- 
guer  and  La  Condamine,  the  equatorial  degree,  56.753 
toises ;  showing  a  difference  of  669  toises,  or  4,389| 
feet.  The  difference,  as  corrected  by  later  measure- 
ments, is  stated  by  recent  authorities  at  3,662  English 
feet ;  by  which  amount  the  polar  degree  exceeds  the 
equatorial.  Thus  Newton's  theory  was  confirmed. 

His  scientific  labors  having  been  finished,  La  Con- 
damine conceived  the  idea  of  returning  home  by  way 
of  the  Amazon  River ;  though  difficulties  attended  the 
project,  which  we  who  live  in  a  land  of  mighty  rivers, 
traversed  by  steamboats,  can  hardly  imagine.  The 
only  means  of  navigating  the  upper  waters  of  the 
river  was  by  rafts  or  canoes  ;  the  latter  capable  of 
containing  but  one  or  tw.o  persons,  besides  a  crew  of 
seven  or  eight  boatmen.  The  only  persons  who  were 
in  the  habit  of  passing  up  and  down  the  river  were 
the  Jesuit  missionaries,  who  made  their  periodical 
visits  to  their  stations  along  its  banks.  A  young 


THE  FRENCH  PHILOSOPHERS,  333 

Spanish  gentleman,  Don  Pedro  Maldonado,  who  at 
first  eagerly  caught  at  the  idea  of  accompanying  the 
French  philosopher  on  his  homeward  route  by  way 
of  the  river,  was  almost  discouraged  by  the  dissua- 
sives  urged  by  his  family  and  friends,  and  seemed  in- 
clined to  withdraw  from  the  enterprise  j  so  danger- 
ous was  the  untried  route  esteemed.  It  was,  how- 
ever, at  length  resolved  that  they  should  hazard  the 
adventure  ;  and  a  place  of  rendezvous  was  appointed 
at  a  village  on  the  river.  On  the  4th  of  July,  1743, 
La  Condamine  commenced  his  descent  of  one  of  the 
streams  which  flow  into  the  great  river  of  the  Ama- 
zons. The  stream  was  too  precipitous  in  its  descent 
to  be  navigated  by  boats  of  any  kind,  and  the  only 
method  used  was  by  rafts.  These  are  made  of  a 
light  kind  of  wood,  or  rather  cane,  similar  to  the  bam- 
boo, the  single  pieces  of  which  are  fastened  together 
by  rushes,  in  such  a  manner,  that  they  yield  to  every 
shock  of  moderate  violence,  and  consequently  are  not 
subject  to  be  separated  even  by  the  strongest.  On 
such  a  conveyance,  the  French  philosopher  glided 
down  the  stream  of  the  Chuchunga,  occasionally  stop- 
ping on  its  banks  for  a  day  or  two  at  a  time  to  allow 
the  waters  to  abate,  and  admit  of  passing  a  dangerous 
rapid  more  safely  ;  and  sometimes  getting  fast  on  the 


334  ELDORADO. 

shallows,  and  requiring  to  be  drawn  off  by  ropes  by 
the  Indian  boatmen.  It  was  not  till  the  19th  of  July 
that  he  entered  the  main  river  at  Laguna,  where  he 
found  his  friend  Maldonado,  who  had  been  waiting 
for  him  some  weeks. 

On  the  23d  of  July,  1743,  they  embarked  in  two 
canoes  of  forty-two  and  forty-four  feet  long,  each 
formed  out  of  one  single  trunk  of  a  tree,  and  each 

provided  with  a  crew  of  eight  rowers.     They  contin- 

tf 
ued  their  course  night  and  day,  in  hopes  to  reach, 

before  their  departure,  the  brigantines  of  the  mission- 
aries, in  which  they  used  to  send  once  a  year,  to 
Para,  the  cacao  which  they  collected  in  their  missions, 
and  for  which  they  got,  in  return,  supplies  of  Euro- 
pean articles  of  necessity. 

On  the  25th  of  July,  La  Condamine  and  his  com- 
panion passed  the  village  of  a  tribe  of  Indians  lately 
brought  under  subjection,  and  in  all  the  wildness  of 
savage  life  :  on  the  27th,  they  reached  another  more 
advanced  in  civilization,  yet  not  so  far  as  to  have 
abandoned  their  savage  practices  of  artificially  flat- 
tening their  heads,  and  elongating  their  ears.  The 
1st  of  August,  they  landed  at  a  missionary  station, 
where  they  found  numerous  Indians  assembled,  and 
some  tribes  so  entirely  barbarous  as  to  be  destitute 


THE  FRENCH  PHILOSOPHERS.  335 


. 


of  clothing  for  either  sex.  "  There  are  in  the  inte- 
rior/' the  narration  goes  on  to  say,  "  some  tribes 
which  devour  the  prisoners  taken  in  war ;  but  there 
are  none  such  on  the  banks  of  the  river." 

After  leaving  this  station,  they  sailed  day  and 
night,  equal  to  seven  or  eight  days'  journey,  without 
seeing  any  habitation.  On  the  5th  of  August,  they 
arrived  at  the  first  of  the  Portuguese  missionary  sta- 
tions, where  they  procured  larger  and  more  commodi- 
ous boats  than  those  in  which  they  had  advanced 
hitherto.  Here  they  began  to  see  the  first  signs  of 
the  benefits  of  access  to  European  sources  of  supply, 
by  means  of  the  vessel  which  went  every  year  from 
Para  to  Lisbon.  They  tarried  six  days  at  the  last  of 
the  missionary  stations,  and  'again  made  a  change  of 
boats  and  of  Indian  crews.  On  the  28th  August, 
being  yet  six  hundred  miles  from  the  sea,  they  per- 
ceived the  ebb  and  flow  of  the  tide. 

On  the  19th  September,  they  arrived  at  Para, 
which  La  Condamine  describes  as  a  great  and  beauti- 
ful city,  built  of  stone,  and  enjoying  a  commerce  with 
Lisbon,  which  made  it  flourishing  and  increasing. 
He  observes,  "  It  is,  perhaps,  the  only  European 
settlement  where  silver  does  not  pass  for  money  ; 
the  whole  currency  being  cocoa."  He  adds  in  a 


ELDORADO. 

note,  "  Specie  currency  has  been  since  intro- 
duced." 

The  Portuguese  authorities  received  the  philoso- 
phers with  all  the  civilities  and  hospitalities  due  to 
persons  honored  with  the  special  protection  and  coun- 
tenance of  two  great  nations, — France  and  Spain.  The 
cannon  were  fired ;  and  the  soldiers-  of  the  garrison, 
with  the  governor  of  the  province  at  their  head, 
turned  out  to  receive  them.  The  governor  had  re- 
ceived orders  from  the  home  government  to  pay  all 
their  expenses,  and  to  furnish  them  every  thing  requi- 
site for  their  comfort  and  assistance  in  their  re- 
searches. La  Condamine  remained  three  months  at 
Para  j  and  then,  declining  the  urgent  request  of  the 
governor  to  embark  in  a  Portuguese  vessel  for  home 
by  way  of  Lisbon,  he  embarked  in  a  boat  rowed  by 
twenty-two  Indians,  under  the  command  of  a  Portu- 
guese officer,  to  coast  along  the  shores  of  the  conti- 
nent to  the  French  colony  of  Cayenne. 

The  city  of  Para  from  whence  he  embarked  is- not 
situated  upon  the  Amazon  River,  but  upon  what  is 
called  the  River  of  Para,  which  branches  off  from  the 
Amazon  near  its  mouth,  and  discharges  itself  into  the 
sea  at  a  distance  of  more  than  a  hundred  miles 
east  of  the  Amazon.  The  intervening  land  is  an 


THE  FRENCH  PHILOSOPHERS.  337 

island  called  Marajo,  along  the  coast  of  which  La  Con- 
damine  and  his  party  steered  till  they  came  to  the 
place  where  the  Amazon  River  discharges  into  the 
sea  that  vast  bulk  of  waters  which  has  been  swelled 
by  the  contributions  of  numerous  tributaries  through- 
out a  course  of  more  than  three  thousand  miles  in 
length.  It  here  meets  the  current  which  runs  along 
the  north-eastern  coast  of  Brazil,  and  gives  rise  to 
that  phenomenon  which  is  called  by  the  Indians  Poro- 
roca.  The  river  and  the  current,  having  both  great 
rapidity,  and  meeting  nearly  at  right  angles,  come 
into  contact  with  great  violence,  and  raise  a  mountain 
of  water  to  the  height  of  one  hundred  and  eighty 
feet.  The  shock  is  so  dreadful,  that  it  makes  all  the 
neighboring  islands  tremble  j  arid  fishermen  and  navi- 
gators fly  from  it  in  the  utmost  terror.  The  river 
and  the  ocean  appear  to  contend  for  the  empire  of  the 
waves  :  but  they  seem  to  come  to  a  compromise ; 
for  the  sea-current  continues  its  way  along  the  coast 
of  Guiana  to  the  Island  of  Trinidad,  while  the  current 
of  the  river  is  still  observable  in  the  ocean  at  a  dis- 
tance of  five  hundred  miles  from  the  shore. 

La   Condamine   passed   this   place   of  meeting   in 
safety  by   waiting   for  a  favorable    course    of  tides, 
crossing  the  Amazon  at  its  mouth,  steering  north ; 
22 


338  ELDORADO. 

and  after  many  delays,  caused  by  the  timidity  and 
bad  seamanship  of  his  Indian  crew,  arrived  at  last 
safe  at  Cayenne  on  the  26th  February,  1744,  having 
been  eight  months  on  his  voyage,  two  of  which  were 
spent  in  his  passage  from  Para,  a  passage  which  he 
avers  a  French  officer  and  crew,  two  years  after  him, 
accomplished  in  six  days.  La  Condamine  was  re- 
ceived with  all  possible  distinction  at  Cayenne,  and 
in  due  time  found  passage  home  to  France,  where  he 
arrived  25th  February,  1745. 


CHAPTER    IX. 

MADAME   GODIN'S   VOYAGE   DOWN  THE   AMAZON. 

E  of  the  French  commissioners,  M.  Godin,  had 
taken  with  him  on  his  scientific  errand  to  Peru 
his  wife  ;  a  lady  for  whom  we  bespeak  the  kind  interest 
of  our  readers,  for  her  name  deserves  honorable  men- 
tion among  the  early  navigators  of  the  Amazon.  The 
labors  of  the  commission  occupied  several  years  ;  and 
when,  in  the  year  1742,  those  labors  were  happily 
brought  to  a  conclusion,  M.  Godin  was  prevented,  by 
circumstances  relating  to  himself  individually,  from 
accompanying  his  colleagues  in  their  return  to  France. 
His  detention  was  protracted  from  year  to  year,  till 
at  last,  in  1749,  he  repaired  alone  to  the  Island  of 
Cayenne  to  prepare  every  thing  necessary  for  the 
homeward  voyage  of  himself  and  his  wife. 

From  Cayenne  he  wrote  to  Paris  to  the  minister  of 
marine,  and  requested  that  his  government  would 
procure  for  him  the  favorable  interposition  of  the 

339 


340  ELDORADO. 

court  of  Portugal  to  supply  him  with  the  means  of 
ascending  the  River  Amazon  to  bring  away  his  wife 
from  Peru,  and  descend  the  stream  with  her  to  the 
Island  of  Cayenne.  Thirteen  years  had  rolled  by  since 
their  arrival  in  the  country,  when  at  last  Madame 
Godin  saw  her  earnest  wish  to  return  home  likely  to 
be  gratified.  All  that  time,  she  had  lived  apart  from 
her  husband ;  she  in  Peru,  he  in  the  French  colony  of 
Cayenne.  At  last,  M.  Godin  had  the  pleasure  to  see 
the  arrival  of  a  galiot  (a  small  vessel  having  from  six- 
teen to  twenty  oars  on  a  side,  and  well  adapted  for 
rapid  progress),  which  had  been  fitted  out  by  the 
order  of  the  King  of  Portugal,  and  despatched  to  Cay- 
enne for  the  purpose  of  taking  him  on  his  long- wished- 
for  journey.  He  immediately  embarked ;  but,  before 
he  could  reach  the  mouth  of  the  Amazon  River,  he  was 
attacked  by  so  severe  an  illness,  that  he  saw  himself 
compelled  to  stop  at  Oyapoc,  a  station  between  Cay- 
enne and  the  mouth  of  the  river,  and  there  to  remain, 
and  to  send  one  Tristan,  whom  he  thought  his  friend, 
in  lieu  of  himself,  up  the  river  to  seek  Madame  Godin, 
and  escort  her  to  him.  He  intrusted  to  him  also,  be- 
sides the  needful  money,  various  articles  of  merchan- 
dise to  dispose  of  to  the  best  advantage.  The 
instructions  which  he  gave  him  were  as  follows :  — 


VOYAGE  DOWN  THE  AMAZON.  341 

The  galiot  had  orders  to  convey  him  to  Loreto, 
about  half-way  up  the  Amazon  River,  the  first  Spanish 
settlement.  From  there  he  was  to  go  to  Laguna, 
another  Spanish  town  about  twelve  miles  farther  up, 
and  to  give  Mr.  Godin's  letter,  addressed  to  his  wife, 
in  charge  to  a  certain  ecclesiastic  of  that  place,  to  be 
forwarded  to  the  place  of  her  residence.  He  himself 
was  to  wait  at  Laguna  the  arrival  of  Madame  Godin. 

The  galiot  sailed,  and  arrived  safe  at  Loreto.  But 
the  faithless  Tristan,  instead  of  going  himself  to  La- 
guna, or  sending  the  letter  there,  contented  himself 
with  delivering  the  packet  to  a  Spanish  Jesuit,  who 
was  going  to  quite  another  region  on  some  occasional 
purpose.  Tristan  himself,  in  the  mean  while,  went 
round  among  the  Portuguese  settlements  to  sell  his 
commodities.  The  result  was,  that  M.  Godin's  letter, 
passing  from  hand  to  hand,  failed  to  reach  the  place 
of  its  destination. 

Meanwhile,  by  what  means  we  know  not,  a  blind 
rumor  of  the  purpose  and  object  of  the  Portuguese 
vessel  lying  at  Loreto  reached  Peru,  and  came  at  last, 
but  without  any  distinctness,  to  the  ears  of  Madame 
Godin.  She  learned  through  this  rurnor  that  a  letter 
from  her  husband  was  on  the  way  to  her ;  but  all  her 
efforts  to  get  possession  of  it  were  fruitless.  At  last, 


342  ELDORADO. 

she  resolved  to  send  a  faithful  negro  servant,  in  com- 
pany with  an  Indian,  to  the  Amazon,  to  procure,  if  pos- 
sible, more  certain  tidings.  This  faithful  servant  made 
his  way  boldly  through  all  hinderances  and  difficulties 
which  beset  his  journey,  reached  Loreto,  talked  with 
Tristan,  and  brought  back  intelligence  that  he,  with 
the  Portuguese  vessel  and  all  its  equipments,  were 
for  her  accommodation,  and  waited  her  orders. 

Now,  then,  Madame  Godin  determined  to  undertake 
this  most  perilous  and  difficult  journey.  She  was 
staying  at  the  time  at  Riobamba,  about  one  hundred 
and  twenty  miles  south  of  Quito,  where  she  had  a 
house  of  her  own  with  garden  and  grounds.  These,- 
with  all  other  things  that  she  could  not  take  with  her, 
she  sold  on  the  best  terms  she  could.  Her  father,  M. 
Grandmaison,  and  her  two  brothers,  who  had  been 
living  with  her  in  Peru,  were  ready  to  accompany  her. 
The  former  set  out  beforehand  to  a  place  the  other 
side  of  the  Cordilleras  to  make  arrangements  for  his 
daughter's  journey  on  her  way  to  the  ship. 

Madame  Godin  received  about  this  time  a  visit 
from  a  certain  Mr.  R.,  who  gave  himself  out  for  a 
French  physician,  and  asked  permission  to  accompa- 
ny her.  He  promised,  moreover,  to  watch  over  her 
health,  and  to  do  all  in  his  power  to  lighten  the  fatigues 


VOYAGE  DOWN   THE  AMAZON.  343 

and  discomforts  of  the  arduous  journey.  She  replied, 
that  she  had  no  authority  over  the  vessel  which  was 
to  carry  her,  and  therefore  could  not  answer  for  it 
that  he  could  have  a  place  in  it.  Mr.  R,  thereupon, 
applied  to  the  brothers  of  Madame  Godin ;  and  they, 
thinking  it  very  desirable  that  she  should  have  a  phy- 
sician with  her,  persuaded  their  sister  to  consent  to 
take  him  in  her  company. 

So,  then,  she  started  from  Riobamba,  which  had  been 
her  home  till  this  time,  the  1st  of  October,  1749,  in 
company  of  the  above-named  persons,  her  black  man, 
and  three  Indian  women.  Thirty  Indians,  to  carry 
her  baggage,  completed  her  company.  Had  the  luck- 
less lady  known  what  calamities,  sufferings,  and  disap- 
pointments awaited  her,  she  would  have  trembled  at 
the  prospect,  and  doubted  of  the  possibility  of  living 
through  it  all,  and  reaching  the  wished-for  goal  of  her 
journey. 

The  party  went  first  across  the  mountains  to  Cane- 
los,  an  Indian  village,  where  they  thought  to  embark 
on  a  little  stream  which  discharges  itself  into  the  Am- 
azon. The  way  thither  was  so  wild  and  unbroken, 
that  it  was  not  even  passable  for  mules,  and  must  be 
travelled  entirely  on  foot. 

M.  Grrandmaisoo,  who  had  set  out  a  whole  month 


344  ELDORADO. 

earlier,  had  stopped  at  Canelos  no  longer  than  was 
necessary  to  make  needful  preparations  for  his  daugh- 
ter and  her  attendants.  Then  he  had  immediately 
pushed  on  toward  the  vessel,  to  still  keep  in  advance, 
and  arrange  matters  for  her  convenience  at  the  next 
station  to  which  she  would  arrive.  Hardly  had  he 
left  Canelos,  when  the  small-pox,  a  disease  which  in 
those  regions  is  particularly  fatal,  broke  out,  and  in 
one  week  swept  off  one-half  of  the  inhabitants,  and  so 
alarmed  the  rest,  that  they  deserted  the  place,  and 
plunged  into  the  wilderness.  Consequently,  when 
Madame  Godin  reached  the  place  with  her  party,  she 
found,  to  her  dismay,  only  two  Indians  remaining, 
whom  the  fury  of  the  plague  had  spared  ;  and,  more- 
over, not  the  slightest  preparation  either  for  her 
reception,  or  her  furtherance  on  her  journey.  This 
was  the  first  considerable  mishap  which  befell  her, 
and  which  might  have  served  to  forewarn  her  of  the 
greater  sufferings  which  she  was  to  encounter. 

A  second  followed  shortly  after.  The  thirty  Indi- 
ans who  thus  far  had  carried  the  baggage,  and  had 
received  their  pay  in  advance,  suddenly  absconded, 
whether  from  fear  of  the  epidemic,  or  that  they 
fancied,  having  never  seen  a  vessel  except  at  a 
distance,  that  they  were  to  be  compelled  to  go  on 


VOYAGE  DOWN  THE  AMAZON.  345 

board  one,  and  b§  carried  away.  There  stood,  then, 
the  deserted  and  disappointed  company,  overwhelmed, 
and  knowing  not  what  course  to  take,  or  how  to  help 
themselves.  The  safest  course  would  have  been  to 
leave  all  their  baggage  to  its  fate,  and  return  back 
the  way  they  came ;  but  the  longing  of  Madame  Go- 
din  for  her  beloved  husband,  from  whom  she  had  now 
been  separated  so  many  years,  gave  her  courage  to 
bid  defiance  to  all  the  hinderances  which  lay  in  her 
way,  and  even  to  attempt  impossibilities. 

She  set  herself,  therefore,  to  persuade  the  two  Indi- 
ans above  mentioned  to  construct  a  boat,  and,  by 
means  of  it,  to  take  her  and  her  company  to  Andoas, 
another  place  about  twelve  days'  journey  distant. 
They  willingly  complied,  receiving  their  pay  in  ad- 
vance. The  boat  was  got  ready  ;  and  all  the  party 
embarked  in  it  under  the  management  of  the  two 
Indians. 

After  they  had  run  safely  two  days'  journey  down 
the  stream,  they  drew  up  to  the  bank  to  pass  the  night 
on  shore.  Here  the  treacherous  Indians  took  the  op- 
portunity, while  the  weary  company  slept,  to  run 
away ;  and,  when  the  travellers  awoke  next  morning, 
they  were  nowhere  to  be  found.  This  was  a  new  and 
unforeseen  calamity,  by  which  their  future  progress 
was  rendered  greatly  more  hazardous. 


346  ELDORADO. 

Without  a  knowledge  of  the  stream  or  the  country, 
and  without  a  guide,  they  again  got  on  board  their 
boat,  and  pushed  on.  The  first  day  went  by  without 
any  misadventure.  The  second,  they  came  up  with  a 
boat  which  lay  near  the  shore,  alongside  of  an  Indian 
hut  built  of  branches  of  trees.  They  found  there  an 
Indian,  just  recovered  from  the  sickness,  and  pre- 
vailed on  him,  by  presents,  to  embark  with  them  to 
take  the  helm.  But  fate  envied  them  this  relief:  for, 
the  next  day,  Mr.  R.'s  hat  fell  into  the  water ;  and  the 
Indian,  in  endeavoring  to  recover  it,  fell  overboard,  and 
was  drowned,  not  having  strength  to  swim  to  the 
shore. 

Now  was  the  vessel  again  without  a  pilot,  and  steered 
by  persons,  not  one  of  whom  had  the  least  knowledge 
of  the  course.  Ere  long,  the  vessel  sprung  a  leak  ;  and 
the  unhappy  company  found  themselves  compelled  to 
land,  and  build  a  hut  to  shelter  them. 

They  were  yet  five  or  six  days'  journey  from  An- 
doas,  the  nearest  place  of  destination.  Mr.  R.  offered, 
for  himself  and  another  Frenchman  his  companion,  to 
go  thither,  and  make  arrangements,  that,  within  four- 
teen days,  a  boat  from  there  should  arrive  and  bring 
them  off.  His  proposal  was  approved  of.  Madame 
God  in  gave  him  her  faithful  black  man  to  accompany 


VOYAGE  DOWN  THE  AMAZON.  347 

him.  He  himself  took  good  care  that  nothing  of  his 
property  should  be  left  behind. 

Fourteen  days  were  now  elapsed ;  but  in  vain  they 
strained  their  eyes  to  catch  sight  of  the  bark  which 
Mr.  R.  had  promised  to  send  to  their  relief.  They 
waited  twelve  days  longer,  but  in  vain.  Their  situa- 
tion grew  more  painful  every  day. 

At  last,  when  all  hope  in  this  quarter  was  lost,  they 
hewed  trees,  and  fastened  them  together  as  well  as 
they  could,  and  made  in  this  way  a  raft.  When  they 
had  finished  it,  they  put  on  their  baggage,  and  seated 
themselves  upon  it,  and  suffered  it  to  float  down  the 
stream.  But  even  this  frail  bark  required  a  steers- 
man acquainted  with  navigation ;  but  they  had  none 
such.  In  no  long  time,  it  struck  against  a  sunken  log, 
and  broke  to  pieces.  The  people  and  their  baggage 
were  cast  into  the  river.  Great,  however,  as  was  the 
danger,  no  one  was  lost.  Madame  Godin  sunk  twice 
to  the  bottom,  but  was  at  last  rescued  by  her  brothers. 

Wet  through  and  through,  exhausted,  and  half  dead 
with  fright,  they  at  last  all  gained  the  shore.  But 
only  imagine  their  lamentable,  almost  desperate,  con- 
dition !  All  their  supplies  lost ;  to  make  another  raft 
impossible ;  even  their  stock  of  provisions  gone ! 
And  where  were  they  when  all  these  difficulties  over- 


348  ELDORADO. 

whelmed  them?  In  a  horrid  wilderness,  so  thick 
grown  up  with  trees  and  bushes,  that  one  could  make 
a  passage  through  it  no  other  way  than  by  axe  and 
knife ;  inhabited  only  by  fiercest  tigers,  and  by  the 
most  formidable  of  serpents,  —  the  rattlesnake.  More- 
over, they  were  without  tools,  without  weapons ! 
Could  their  situation  be  more  deplorable? 


CHAPTER    X. 

MADAME  GODIN'S  VOYAGE   CONTINUED. 

rriHE  unfortunate  travellers  had  now  but  the  choice 
of  two  desperate  expedients, —  either  to  wait 
where  they  were  the  termination  of  their  wretched 
existence,  or  try  the  almost  impossible  task  of  pene- 
trating along  the  banks  of  the  river,  through  the  un- 
broken forest,  till  they  might  reach  Andoas.  They 
chose  the  latter,  but  first  made  their  way  back  to  their 
lately  forsaken  hut  to  take  what  little  provisions  they 
had  there  left.  Having  accomplished  this,  they  set 
out  on  their  most  painful  and  dangerous  journey. 
They  observed,  when  they  followed  the  shore  of  the 
river,  that  its  windings  lengthened  their  way.  To 
avoid  this,  they  endeavored,  without  leaving  the 
course  of  the  river,  to  keep  a  straight  course.  By 
this  means,  they  lost  themselves  in  the  entangled  for- 
est ;  and  every  exertion  to  find  their  way  was  inefiect- 
"ual.  Their  clothes  were  torn  to  shreds,  and  hung 


350  ELDORADO. 

dangling  from  their  limbs ;  their  bodies  were  sadly 
wounded  by  thorns  and  briers;  and,  as  their  scanty 
provision  of  food  was  almost  gone,  nothing  seemed 
left  to  them  but  to  sustain  their  wretched  existence 
with  wild  fruit,  seeds  and  buds  of  the  palm-trees. 

At  last,  they  sank  under  their  unremitted  labor. 
Wearied  with  the  hardships  of  such  travel,  torn  and 
bleeding  in  every  part  of  their  bodies,  and  distracted 
with  hunger,  terror,  and  apprehensions,  they  lost  the 
small  remnant  of  their  energy,  and  could  do  no  more. 
They  sat  down,  and  had  no  power  to  rise  again.  In 
three  or  four  days,  one  after  another  died  at  this  stage 
of  their  journey.  Madame  Godin  lay  for  the  space  of 
twenty-four  hours  by  the  side  of  her  exhausted  and 
helpless  brothers  and  companions  :  she  felt  herself 
benumbed,  stupefied,  senseless,  yet  at  the  same  time 
tormented  by  burning  thirst.  At  last,  Providence,  on 
whom  she  relied,  gave  her  courage  and  strength  to 
rouse  herself  and  seek  for  a  rescue,  which  was  in  store 
for  her,  though  she  knew  not  where  to  look  for  it. 

Around  lay  the  dead  bodies  of  her  brothers  and  her 
other  companions,  —  a  sight  which  at  another  time 
would  have  broken  her  heart.  She  was  almost  naked. 
The  scanty  remnants  of  her  clothing  were  so  torn  by 
the  thorns  as  to  be  almost  useless.  She  cut  the  shoes 


VOYAGE  DOWN  THE  AMAZON  CONTINUED.      351 

from  her  dead  brothers'  feet,  bound  the  soles  under 
her  own,  and  plunged  again  into  the  thicket  in  search 
of  something  to  allay  her  raging  hunger  and  thirst. 
Terror  at  seeing  herself  so  left  alone  in  such  a  fear- 
ful wilderness,  deserted  by  all  the  world,  and  appre- 
hension of  a  dreadful  death  constantly  hovering  before 
her  eyes,  made  such  an  impression  upon  her,  that  her 
hair  turned  gray. 

It  was  not  till  the  second  day  after  she  had  resumed 
her  wandering  that  she  found  water,  and,  a  little  while 
after,  some  wild  fruit,  and  a  few  eggs  of  birds.  But 
her  throat  was  so  contracted  by  long  fasting,  that 
she  could  hardly  swallow.  These  served  to  keep  life 
in  her  frame. 

Eight  long  days  she  wandered  in  this  manner  hope- 
lessly, and  strove  to  sustain  her  wretched  existence. 
If  one  should  read  in  a  work  of  fiction  any  thing  equal 
to  it,  he  would  charge  the  author  with  exaggeration, 
and  violation  of  probability.  But  it  is  history  ;  and, 
however  incredible  her  story  may  sound,  it  is  rigidly 
conformed  to  the  truth  in  all  its  circumstances,  as  it 
was  afterwards  taken  down  from  the  mouth  of  Ma- 
dame Godin  herself. 

On  the  eighth  day  of  her  hopeless  wandering,  the 
hapless  lady  reached  the  banks  of  the  Bobonosa,  a 


352  ELDORADO. 

stream  which  flows  into  the  Amazon.  At  the  break 
of  day,  she  heard  at  a  little  distance  a  noise,  and  was 
alarmed  at  it.  She  would  have  fled,  but  at  once  re- 
flected that  nothing  worse  than  her  present  circum- 
stances could  happen  to  her.  She  took  courage,  and 
went  towards  the  place  whence  the  sound  proceeded  ; 
and  here  she  found  two  Indians,  who  were  occupied 
in  shoving  their  boat  into  the  water. 

Madame  Godin  approached,  and  was  kindly  received 
by  them.  She  told  to  them  her  desire  to  be  conveyed 
to  Andoas ;  and  the  good  savages  consented  to  carry 
her  thither  in  their  boat.  They  did  so  ;  and  now  be- 
hold her  arrived  at  that  place  which  the  mean  and 
infamous  treachery  of  Mr.  R.  was  the  only  cause  of 
her  not  having  reached  long  ago.  This  base  fellow 
had,  with  unfeeling  cruelty,  thrown  to  the  winds  his 
promise  to  procure  them  a  boat,  and  had  gone  on 
business  of  his  own  to  Omaguas,  a  Spanish  mission 
station,  without  in  the  least  troubling  himself  about  his 
pledged  word,  and  the  rescue  of  the  unfortunates  left 
behind.  The  honest  negro  was  more  true  to  duty, 
though  he  was  born  and  bred  a  heathen,  and  the  other 
a  Christian. 

While  the  civilized  and  polished  Frenchman  unfeel- 
ingly went  away,  and  left  his  benefactress  and  her 


VOYAGE  DOWN  THE  AMAZON  CONTINUED.       353 

companions  to  languish  in  the  depths  of  misery,  the 
sable  heathen  ceased  not  his  exertions  till  he  had  pro- 
cured two  Indians  to  go  up  the  river  with  him,  and 
bring  away  his  deserted  mistress  and  her  compan- 
ions. But,  most  unfortunately,  he  did  not  reach  the 
hut  where  he  had  left  them  before  they  had  carried 
into  execution  the  unlucky  determination  to  leave  the 
hut,  and  seek  their  way  through  the  wilderness.  So 
he  had  the  pain  of  failing  to  find  her  on  his  arrival. 

Even  then,  the  faithful  creature  did  not  feel  as  if  all 
was  done.  He,  with  his  Indian  companions,  followed 
the  traces  of  the  party  till  he  came  to  the  place  where 
the  bodies  of  the  perished  adventurers  lay,  which 
were  already  so  decayed,  that  he  could  not  distinguish 
one  from  the  other.  This  pitiable  sight  led  him  to 
conclude  that  none  of  the  company  could  have  escaped 
death.  He  returned  to  the  hut  to  take  away  some 
things  of  Madame  Godin's  which  were  left  there,  and 
carried  them  not  only  back  with  him  to  Andoas,  but 
from  thence  (another  touching  proof  of  his  fidelity)  to 
Omaguas,  that  he  might  deposit  the  articles,  some  of 
which  were  of  considerable  value,  in  the  hands  of  the 
unworthy  Mr.  R.,  to  be  by  him  delivered  to  the  father 
of  his  lamented  mistress. 

And  how  did  this  unworthy  Mr.  R.  behave   when 

23 


354  ELDORADO. 

he  was  apprised  by  the  negro  of  the  lamentable  death 
of  those  whom  he  had  so  unscrupulously  given  over  to 
destitution?  Did  he  shudder  at  the  magnitude  and 
baseness  of  his  crime  ?  Oh,  no !  Like  a  heartless 
knave,  he  added  dishonesty  to  cruelty,  took  the  things 
into  his  keeping,  and,  to  secure  himself  in  the  posses- 
sion of  them,  sent  the  generous  negro  back  to  Quito. 
Joachim  —  for  that  was  the  name  of  this  honest  and 
noble  black  man  —  had  unluckily  set  out  on  his  jour- 
ney back  before  Madame  Godin  arrived  at  Andoas. 
Thus  he  was  lost  to  her ;  and  her  affliction  at  the  loss 
of  such  a  tried  friend  showed  that  the  greatness  of  her 
past  misfortunes  had  not  made  her  incapable  of  feel- 
ing new  distresses. 

In  Andoas  she  found  a  Christian  priest,  a  Spanish 
missionary  ;  and  the  behavior  of  this  unchristian  Chris- 
tian contrasts  with  the  conduct  of  her  two  Indian 
preservers,  as  that  of  the  treacherous  R.  with  that  of 
the  generous  negro.  For  instance,  when  Madame 
Godin  was  in  embarrassment  how  to  show  her  grati- 
tude to  the  good  Indians  who  had  saved  her  life,  she 
remembered,  that,  according  to  the  custom  of  the  coun- 
try, she  wore  around  her  neck  a  pair  of  gold  chains, 
weighing  about  four  ounces.  These  were  her  whole 
remaining  property ;  but  she  hesitated  not  a  moment. 


VOYAGE  DOWN  THE  AMAZON  CONTINUED.       355 

but  took  them  off,  and  gave  one  to  each  of  her  benefac- 
tors. They  were  delighted  beyond  measure  at  such  a 
gift ;  but  the  avaricious  and  dishonest  priest  took  them 
away  from  them  before  the  face  of  the  generous  giver, 
and  gave  them  instead  some  yards  of  coarse  cotton 
cloth,  which  they  call,  in  that  country,  Tukujo.  And 
this  man  was  one  of  those  who  were  sent  to  spread 
Christianity  among  the  heathen,  and  one  from  whom 
those  same  Indians  whom  he  had  treated  so  dishon- 
estly would  hear  the  lesson,  "  Thou  shalt  not  covet 
thy  neighbor's  goods  "  ! 

Madame  Godin  felt,  at  seeing  such  unchristian  and 
unmanly  behavior,  such  deep  disgust,  that,  as  soon 
as  she  was  somewhat  recruited  from  the  effects  of  so 
many  sufferings,  she  longed  for  a  sight  of  some  boat 
to  enable  her  to  escape  from  the  companionship  of  this 
unjust  priest,  and  get  to  Laguna,  one  of  the  afore- 
mentioned Spanish  mission  stations.  A  kind  Indian 
woman  made  her  a  petticoat  of  cotton  cloth,  though 
Madame  Godin  had  nothing  to  give  her  in  payment 
for  it.  But  this  petticoat  was  to  her,  afterwards,  a 
sacred  thing,  that  she  would  not  have  parted  with  for 
any  price.  She  laid  it  carefully  away  with  the  slip- 
pers which  she  made  of  her  brothers'  shoes,  and  never 


356  ELDORADO. 

could,  in  after-times,  look  at  the  two  without  experi- 
encing a  rush  of  sad  and  tender  recollections. 

At  Laguna  she  had  the  good  fortune  to  find  a  mis- 
sionary of  better  disposition.  This  one  received  her 
with  kindness  and  sympathy,  and  exerted  himself 
every  way  he  could  to  restore  her  health,  shattered 
by  so  much  suffering.  He  wrote  also  on  her  behalf 
to  the  Governor  of  Omaguas,  to  beg  him  to  aid  in  ex- 
pediting her  journey.  By  this  means,  the  elegant  Mr. 
R.  learned  that  she  was  still  alive  ;  and  as  she  was  not 
likely  in  future  to  be  burdensome  to  him,  while  he 
might,  through  her  means,  get  a  passage  in  the  Por- 
tuguese vessel,  he  failed  not  to  call  upon  her  at 
Laguna.  He  delivered  to  her  there  some  few  of  the 
things  which  Joachim  had  left  in  his  charge ;  but  to 
the  question, "  What  had  become  of  the  rest?  "  he  had 
no  other  answer  to  make  but  "  They  were  spoilt."" 
The  knave  forgot,  when  he  said  this,  that  gold  brace- 
lets, snuff-boxes,  ear-rings,  and  pearls,  of  which  this 
property  consisted,  are  not  apt  to  spoil. 

Madame  Godin  could  not  forbear  making  to  him  the 
well-merited  reproach  that  he  was  the  cause  of  her 
late  sufferings,  and  guilty  of  the  mournful  death  of 
her  brothers  and  her  other  companions.  She  desired 
to  know,  moreover,  why  he  had  sent  away  her  faithful 


VOYAGE  DOWN  THE  AMAZON  CONTINUED.       357 

servant,  the  good  Joachim ;  and  his  unworthy  reply 
was,  he  had  apprehensions  that  he  would  murder 
him.  To  the  question,  how  he  could  have  such  a 
suspicion  against  a  man  whose  tried  fidelity  and  hon- 
est disposition  were  known  to  him,  he  knew  not  what 
to  answer. 

The  good  missionary  explained  to  Madame  Godin, 
after  she  was  somewhat  recruited  from  her  late  suffer- 
ings, the  frightful  length  of  the  way,  and  the  labors  and 
dangers  of  her  journey  yet  to  come,  and  tried  hard  to 
induce  her  to  alter  her  intention,  and  return  to  Rio 
Bambas,  her  former  residence,  instead  of  setting  forth 
to  encounter  a  new  series  of  disappointments  and 
perils.  He  promised,  in  that  case,  to  convey  her 
safely  and  with  comfort.  But  the  heroic  woman  re- 
jected the  proposal  with  immovable  firmness.  "  God, 
who  had  so  wonderfully  protected  her  so  far,"  she 
said,  "  would  have  her  in  his  keeping  for  the  remain- 
der of  her  way.  She  had  but  one  wish  remaining,  and 
that  was  to  be  re-united  to  her  husband ;  and  she 
knew  no  danger  terrible  enough  to  induce  her  to  give 
up  this  one  ruling  desire  of  her  heart." 

The  missionary,  therefore,  had  a  boat  got  ready  to 
carry  her  to  the  Portuguese  vessel.  The  Governor 
of  Omaguas  furnished  the  boat,  and  supplied  it  well 


358  ELDORADO. 

with  provisions :  and,  that  the  commander  of  the  Por- 
tuguese galiot  might  be  informed  of  her  approach,  he 
sent  a  smaller  boat  with  provisions,  and  two  soldiers 
by  land,  along  the  banks  of  the  river,  and  betook  him- 
self to  Loreto,  where  the  galiot  had  been  so  long 
lying  j  and  there  he  waited  till  Madame  Godin  arrived. 

She  still  suffered  severely  from  the  consequences 
of  the  injuries  which  she  had  sustained  during  her 
wanderings  in  the  wilderness.  Particularly,  the 
thumb  of  one  hand,  in  which  she  had  thrust  a  thorn, 
which  they  had  not  been  able  to  get  out,  was  in  a  bad 
condition.  The  bone  itself  was  become  carious,  and 
she  found  it  necessary  to  have  the  flesh  cut  open  to 
allow  fragments  of  the  bone  to  come  out.  As  for  the 
rest,  she  experienced  from  the  commander  of  the  Por- 
tuguese vessel  all  possible  kindness,  and  reached  the 
mouth  of  the  Amazon  River  without  any  further  mis- 
adventure. 

Mr.  Godin,  who  still  continued  at  Oyapoc  (the  same 
place  where  on  account  of  sickness  he  had  been  obliged 
to  stop),  was  no  sooner  informed  of  the  approach  of 
his  wife  than  he  went  on  board  a  vessel,  and  coasted 
along  the  shore  till  he  met  the  galiot.  The  joy  of 
again  meeting,  after  a  separation  of  so  many 
years,  and  after  such  calamities  undergone,  was,  as 


VOYAGE  DOWN   THE  AMAZON  CONTINUED.       359 

may  well  be  supposed,  on  both  sides,  indescribably 
great.  Their  re-union  seemed  like  a  resurrection  from 
the  dead,  since  both  of  them  had  more  than  once 
given  up  all  hope  of  ever  seeing  the  other  in  this  life. 
The  happy  husband  now  conveyed  his  wife  to  Oya- 
poc,  and  thence  to  Cayenne ;  whence  they  departed 
on  their  return  to  France,  in  company  with  the  vener- 
able Mr.  De  Grandmaison.  Madame  Godin  remained, 
however,  constantly  sad,  notwithstanding  her  present 
ample  cause  for  joy  j  and  every  endeavor  to  raise  her 
spirits  was  fruitless,  so  deep  and  inextinguishable  an 
impression  had  the  terrible  sufferings  she  had  under- 
gone made  upon  her  mind.  She  spoke  unwillingly  of 
all  that  .she  had  suffered  ;  and  even  her  husband  found 
out  with  difficulty,  and  by  little  and  little,  the  circum- 
stances which  we  have  narrated,  taken  from  accounts 
under  his  own  hand.  He  thought  he  could  thereby 
infer  that  she  had  kept  to  herself,  to  spare  his  feelings, 
many  circumstances  of  a  distressing  nature,  which  she 
herself  preferred  to  forget.  Her  heart,  too,  was,  by 
reason  of  her  sufferings,  so  attuned  to  pity  and  for- 
bearance, that  her  compassion  even  extended  to  the 
base  and  wicked  men  who  had  treated  her  with  such 
injustice.  She  would  therefore  add  nothing  to  induce 
her  husband  to  invoke  the  vengeance  of  the  law 


360  ELDORADO. 

against  the  faithless  Tristan,  the  first  cause  of  all  her 
misfortunes,  who  had  converted  to  his  own  use  many 
thousand  dollars'  worth  of  property  which  had  been 
intrusted  to  him.  She  had  even  allowed  herself  to  be 
pursuaded  to  take  on  board  the  boat  from  Omaguas 
down,  for  a  second  time,  the  mean-souled  Mr.  R. 

So  true  is  it  that  adversity  and  suffering  do  fulfil 
the  useful  purpose  of  rendering  the  human  heart 
tender,  placable,  and  indulgent. 


CHAPTER    XL 

HERNDON'S   EXPEDITION. 

TN  the  month  of  August,  1850,  Lieut.  Herndon,  of 
the  United-States  navy,  being  on  board  the  frig- 
ate "  Vandal  ia,"  then  lying  at  anchor  in  the  harbor  of 
Valparaiso,  received  information  that  he  was  desig- 
nated by  the  Secretary  of  the  Navy  to  explore  the 
Valley  of  the  Amazon.  On  the  4th  of  April,  being 
then  at  Lima,  he  received  his  orders,  and,  on  the  21st 
of  May,  commenced  his  land  journey  to  the  highest 
point  on  the  Amazon  navigable  for  boats,  which  is 
about  three  hundred  miles  from  its  source ;  in  which 
distance  there  are  twenty-seven  rapids,  the  last  of 
which  is  called  the  Pongo  (or  falls)  de  Manseriche. 
Over  these  the  water  rushes  with  frightful  rapidity ; 
but  they  are  passed,  with  great  peril  and  difficulty, 
by  means  of  rafts.  From  the  Pongo  de  Manse- 
riche, Lieut.  Herndon  states  that  an  unbroken  chan- 
nel of  eighteen  feet  in  depth  may  be  found  to  the 

361 


362  ELDORADO. 

Atlantic    Ocean,  —  a    distance    of    three    thousand 
miles. 

The  party  consisted  of  Lieut.  Herndon,  commander; 
Passe d-midshipman  Gibbon ;  a  young  master's  mate 
named  Richards;  a  young  Peruvian,  who  had  made 
the  voyage  down  the  Amazon  a  few  years  before, 
who  was  employed  as  interpreter  to  the  Indians ; 
and  Mauricio,  an  Indian  servant.  They  were  mounted 
on  mules ;  and  their  baggage  of  all  kinds,  including 
looking-glasses,  beads,  and  other  trinkets  for  the  In- 
dians, and  some  supplies  of  provisions,  were  carried 
also  on  muleback,  under  the  charge  of  an  arriero, 
or  muleteer,  who  was  an  Indian.  The  party  were 
furnished  with  a  tent,  which  often  came  in  use 
for  nightly  shelter,  as  the  roadside  inns  furnished 
none,  and  the  haciendas,  or  farm-houses,  which 
they  sometimes  availed  themselves  of,  afforded  but 
poor  accommodation.  The  following  picture  of  the 
lieutenant's  first  night's  lodgings,  not  more  than  ten 
miles  from  Lima,  is  a  specimen :  "  The  house  was 
built  of  adobe,  or  sun-dried  bricks,  and  roofed  with 
tiles.  It  had  but  one  room,  which  was  the  general 
receptacle  for  all  comers.  A  mud  projection,  of  two 
feet  high  and  three  wide,  stood  out  from  the  walls  of 
'the  room  all  around,  and  served  as  a  permanent  bed- 


VALLEY  OF  THE  AHAZON.  363 

place  for  numbers.  Others  laid  their  blankets  and 
cloaks,  and  stretched  themselves,  on  the  floor ;  so 
that,  with  whites,  Indians,  negroes,  trunks,  packages, 
horse-furniture,  game-cocks,  and  guinea-pigs,  we  had 
quite  a  caravansera  appearance." 

The  lieutenant  found  the  general  answer  to  his  in- 
quiry for  provisions  for  his  party,  and  of  fodder  for 
their  animals,  was,  "  No  hay  "  (there  is  none).  The 
refusal  of  the  people  to  sell  supplies  of  these  indis- 
pensable articles  was  a  source  of  continued  inconve- 
nience. It  arose  probably  from  their  fear  to  have  it 
known  that  they  had  possessions,  lest  the  hand  of 
authority  should  be  laid  upon  them,  and  their  prop- 
erty be  taken  without  payment.  The  cultivators,  it 
must  be  remembered,  are  native  Indians,  under  the 
absolute  control  of  their  Spanish  masters,  and  have 
no  recognized  rights  protected  by  law.  While  this 
state  of  things  continues,  civilization  is  effectually 
debarred  progress. 

The  usual  day's  travel  was  twelve  to  fifteen  miles. 
The  route  ascended  rapidly;  and  the  River  Rimac, 
along  whose  banks  their  road  lay,  was  soon  reduced 
to  a  mountain  torrent,  raging  in  foam  over  the  frag- 
ments of  the  rocky  cliffs  which  overhung  its  bed. 
The  road  occasionally  widened  out,  anji  gave  room 
for  a  little  cultivation. 


364  ELDORADO. 

May  27.  —  They  had  now  reached  a  height  of  ten 
thousand  feet  above  the  level  of  the  sea.  Here  the 
traveller  feels  that  he  is  lifted  above  the  impurities 
of  the  lower  regions  of  the  atmosphere,  and  is  breath- 
ing air  free  from  taint.  The  stars  sparkled  with  in- 
tense brilliancy.  The  temperature  at  night  was  get- 
ting cool,  and  the  travellers  found  they  required  all 
their  blankets.  But  by  day  the  heat  was  oppressive 
until  tempered  by  the  sea-breeze,  which  set  in  about 
eleven  o'clock  in  the  morning. 

The  productions  of  the  country  are  Indian  corn, 
alfalfa  (a  species  of  lucern),  and  potatoes.  The  po- 
tato, in  this  its  native  country,  is  small,  but  very  fine. 
They  saw  here  a  vegetable  of  the  potato  kind  called 
oca.  Boiled  or  roasted,  it  is  very  agreeable  to  the 
taste,  in  flavor  resembling  green  corn.  • 

Here  they  entered  upon  the  mining  region.  "  The 
Earth  here  shows  her  giant  skeleton  bare  :  mountains, 
rather  than  rocks,  rear  their  gray  heads  to  the  skies ; 
and  proximity  made  the  scene  more  striking  and  sub- 
lime." Lieut.  Herndon  had  brought  letters  to  the 
superintendent  of  the  mines,  who  received  the  trav- 
ellers kindly  and  hospitably.  This  establishment  is 
managed  by  a  superintendent  and  three  assistants, 
and  about  forty  working  hands.  The  laborers  are 


VALLEY  OF  THE  AMAZON.  365 

Indians,  —  strong,  hardy-looking  fellows,  though  low 
in  stature,  and  stupid  in  expression.  The  manner  of 
getting  the  silver  from  the  ore  is  this :  The  ore  is 
broken  into  pieces  of  the  size  of  an  English  walnut, 
and  then  ground  to  a  fine  powder.  The  ground  ore 
is  then  mixed  with  salt,  at  the  rate  of  fifty  pounds  of 
salt  to  every  six  hundred  of  ore,  and  taken  to  the 
ovens  to  be  toasted.  After  being  toasted,  the  ore  is 
laid  in  piles  of  about  six  hundred  pounds  upon  the 
stone  floor.  The  piles  are  then  moistened  with 
water,  and  quicksilver  is  sprinkled  on  them  through 
a  woollen  cloth.  The  mass  is  well  mixed  by  treading 
with  the  feet,  and  working  with  hoes.  A  little  cal- 
cined iron  pyrites,  called  magistral,  is  also  added. 
The  pile  is  often  examined  to  see  if  the  amalgamation 
is  going  on  well.  It  is  left  to  stand  for  eight  or  nine 
days  until  the  amalgamation  is  complete  ;  then  carried 
to  an  elevated  platform,  and  thrown  into  a  well,  or 
cavity :  a  stream  of  water  is  turned  on,  and  four  or 
five  men  trample  and  wash  it  with  their  feet.  The 
amalgam  sinks  to  the  bottom,  and  the  mud  and  water 
are  let  off  by  an  aperture  in  the  lower  part  of  the 
well.  The  amalgam  is  then  put  into  conical  bags  of 
coarse  linen,  which  are  hung  up j  and  the  weight  of 
the  mass  presses  out  a  quantity  of  quicksilver,  which 


366  ELDORADO. 

oozes  through  the  linen,  and  is  caught  in  vessels  be- 
low. The  mass,  now  dry,  and  somewhat  harder  than 
putty,  is  carried  to  the  ovens,  where  the  remainder 
of  the  quicksilver  is  driven  off  by  heat,  and  the  resi- 
due is  plata  pina,  or  pure  silver.  The  proportion  of 
pure  silver  in  the  amalgam  is  about  twenty-two  per 
cent.  This  is  an  unusually  rich  mine. 

Returning  from  the  mine,  the  party  met  a  drove  of 
llamas  on  their  way  from  the  hacienda.  This  is  quite 
an  imposing  sight,  especially  when  the  drove  is  en- 
countered suddenly  at  a  turn  of  the  road.  The  lead- 
er, who  is  always  selected  on  account  of  his  superior 
height,  has  his  head  decorated  with  tufts  of  woollen 
fringe,  hung  with  little  bells  ;  arid  his  great  height 
(often  six  feet),  gallant  and  graceful  carriage,  pointed 
ear,  restless  eye,  and  quivering  lip,  as  he  faces  you 
for  a  moment,  make  him  as  striking  an  object  as  one 
can  well  conceive.  Upon  pressing  on  him,  he  bounds 
aside  either  up  or  down  the  cliff,  and  is  followed  by 
the  herd,  scrambling  over  places  that  would  be  im- 
passable for  the  mule  or  the  ass.  The  llama  travels 
not  more  than  nine  or  ten  miles  a  day,  his  load  being 
about  one  hundred  and  thirty  pounds.  He  will  not 
carry  more,  and  will  be  beaten  to  death  rather  than 
move  when  he  is  overloaded  or  tired.  The  males 


VALLEY  OF   THE  AMAZON.  307 

only  are  worked :  they  appear  gentle  and  docile, 
but,  when  irritated,  have  a  very  savage  look,  and  spit 
at  the  object  of  their  resentment.  The  guanaco,  or 
alpaca,  is  another  species  of  this  animal,  and  the 
vicunia  a  third.  The  guanaco  is  as  large  as  the 
llama,  and  bears  a  fleece  of  long  and  coarse  wool. 
The  vicunia  is  much  smaller,  and  its  wool  is  short  and 
fine :  so  valuable  is  it,  that  it  brings  at  the  port  of 
shipment  a  dollar  a  pound.  Our  travellers  saw  no 
guanacos,  but  now  and  then,  in  crossing  the  moun- 
tains, caught  a  glimpse  of  the  wild  and  shy  vicunia. 
They  go  in  herds  of  ten  or  fifteen  females,  accom- 
panied by  one  male,  who  is  ever  on  the  alert.  On 
the  approach  of  danger,  he  gives  warning  by  a  shrill 
whistle ;  and  his  charge  make  off  with  the  speed  of 
the  wind. 

On  the  31st  of  May,  the  thermometer  stood  at 
thirty-six  degrees  at  five,  A.M.  This,  it  must  be  re- 
membered, was  in  the  torrid  zone,  in  the  same  lati- 
tude as  Congo  in  Africa,  and  Sumatra  in  Asia ;  yet 
how  different  the  climate  1  This  is  owing  to  the  ele- 
vation, which  at  this  water-shed  of  the  continent, 
which  separates  the  rivers  of  the  Atlantic  from  those 
of  the  Pacific,  was  about  sixteen  thousand  feet  above 
the  level  of  the  sea.  The  peaks  of  the  Cordillera 


368  ELDORADO, 

presented  the  appearance  of  a  hilly  country  at  home 
on  a  winter's  day ;  while  the  lower  ranges  were 
dressed  in  bright  green,  with  placid  little  lakes  inter- 
spersed, giving  an  air  of  quiet  beauty  to  the  scene. 

The  travellers  next  arrived  at  Morococha,  where 
they  found  copper-mining  to  be  the  prevailing  occu- 
pation. The  copper  ore  is  calcined  in  the  open  air, 
in  piles  consisting  of  ore  and  coal,  which  burn  for  a 
month.  The  ore  thus  calcined  is  taken  to  the  ovens ; 
and  sufficient  heat  is  employed  to  melt  the  copper, 
which  runs  off  into  moulds  below.  The  copper,  in 
this  state,  is  impure,  containing  fifty  per  cent  of  for- 
eign matter ;  and  is  worth  fifteen  cents  the  pound  in 
England,  where  it  is  refined.  There  is  a  mine  of  fine 
coal  near  the  hacienda,  which  yields  an  abundant 
supply. 

The  travellers  passed  other  mining  districts,  rich 
in  silver  and  copper.  A  large  portion  of  the  silver 
which  forms  the  circulation  of  the  world  is  dug  from 
the  range  of  mountains  which  they  were  now  cross- 
ing, and  chiefly  from  that  slope  of  them  which  is 
drained  off  into  the  Amazon. 

Their  descent,  after  leaving  the  mining  country, 
was  rapid.  On  June  6,  we  find  them  at  the  head  of  a 
ravine  leading  down  to  the  Valley  of  Tarma.  The 


VALLEY  OF  THE  AMAZON.  369 

height  of  this  spot  above  the  level  of  the  sea  was 
11,270  feet.  As  they  rode  down  the  steep  descent, 
the  plants  and  flowers  that  they  had  left  on  the  other 
side  began  to  re-appear.  First  the  short  grass  and 
small  clover,  then  barley,  lucern,  Indian  corn,  beans, 
turnips,  shrubs,  bushes,  trees,  flowers,  growing  larger 
and  gayer  in  their  colors,  till  the  pretty  little  city  of 
Tarma,  imbosomed  among  the  hills,  and  enveloped  in 
its  covering  of  willows  and  fruit-trees,  with  its  long 
lawns  of  alfalfa  (the  greenest  of  grasses)  stretching- 
out  in  front,  broke  upon  their  view.  It  is  a  place  of 
seven  thousand  inhabitants,  beautifully  situated  in  an 
amphitheatre  of  mountains,  which  are  clothed  nearly 
to  the  top  with  waving  fields  of  barley.  The  lieuten- 
ant gives  an  attractive  description  of  this  mountain 
city,  whose  natural  productions  extend  from  the  ap- 
ples and  peaches  of  the  temperate  zone  to  the  oranges 
and  pine-apples  of  the  tropics  ;  and  whose  air  is  so 
temperate  and  pure,  that  there  was  but  one  physician 
to  a  district  of  twenty  thousand  people,  and  he  was 
obliged  to  depend  upon  government  for  a  part  of  his 
support. 

The  party  left  Tarma  on  the  16th  of  June,  and  re- 
sumed their  descent  of  the  mountains.  The  ride  was 
the  wildest  they  had  yet  had.  The  ascents  and  de- 

24 


370  ELDORADO. 

scents  were  nearly  precipitous  ;  and  the  scene  was 
rugged,  wild,  and  grand  beyond  description.  At  cer- 
tain parts  of  the  road,  it  is  utterly  impossible  for  two 
beasts  to  pass  abreast,  or  for  one  to  turn  and  retreat ; 
and  the  only  remedy,  when  they  meet,  is  to  tumble 
one  off  the  precipice,  or  to  drag  him  back  by  the  tail 
until  he  reaches  a  place  where  the  other  can  pass. 
They  met  with  a  considerable  fright  in  this  way  one 
day.  They  were  riding  in  single  file  along  one  of 
those  narrow  ascents  where  the  road  is  cut  out  of 
the  mountain-side,  and  the  traveller  has  a  perpendicu- 
lar wall  on  one  hand,  and  a  sheer  precipice  of  many 
hundreds  of  feet  upon  the  other.  Mr.  Gibbon  was 
riding  ahead.  Just  as  he  was  about  to  turn  a  sharp 
bend  of  the  road,  the  head  of  a  bull  peered  round  it, 
on  the  descent.  When  the  bull  came  in  full  view,  he 
stopped ;  and  the  travellers  could  see  the  heads  of 
other  cattle  clustering  over  his  quarters,  and  hear 
the  shouts  of  the  cattle-drivers  far  behind,  urging  on 
their  herd.  The  bull,  with  lowered  crest,  and  savage, 
sullen  look,  came  slowly  on,  and  actually  got  his  head 
between  the  perpendicular  rock  and  the  neck  of  Gib- 
bon's mule.  But  the  sagacious  beast  on  which  he 
was  mounted,  pressing  her  haunches  hard  against  the 
wall,  gathered  her  feet  close  under  her,  and  turned  as 


VALLEY  OF  THE  AMAZON.  371 

upon  a  pivot.  This  placed  the  bull  on  the  outside 
(there  was  room  to  pass,  though  no  one  would  have 
thought  it)  ;  and  he  rushed  by  at  the  gallop,  followed 
in  single  file  by  the  rest  of  the  herd.  The  lieutenant 
owns  that  he  and  his  friend  "  felt  frightened." 

On  the  18th  of  June,  they  arrived  at  the  first  haci- 
enda, where  they  saw  sugar-cane,  yucca,  pine-apples, 
and  plantains.  Besides  these,  cotton  and  coffee  were 
soon  after  found  in  cultivation.  The  laborers  are  na- 
tive Indians,  nominally  free,  but,  by  the  customs  of 
the  country,  pretty  closely  held  in  subjection  to  their 
employers.  Their  nominal  wages  are  half  a  dollar  a 
day ;  but  this  is  paid  in  articles  necessary  for  their 
support,  which  are  charged  to  them  at  such  prices  as 
to  keep  them  always  in  debt.  As  debtors,  the  law 
will  enforce  the  master's  claim  on  them  ;  and  it  is 
almost  hopeless  for  them  to  desert ;  for,  unless  they 
get  some  distance  off  before  they  are  recognized, 
they  will  be  returned  as  debtors  to  their  employers. 
Freedom,  under  such  circumstances,  is  little  better 
than  slavery;  but  it  is  better,  for  this  reason,  —  that 
it  only  requires  some  improvement  in  the  intelligence 
and  habits  of  the  laborers  to  convert  it  into  a  system 
of  free  labor  worthy  of  the  name. 

The  yucca  (cassava-root)  is  a  plant  of  fifteen  or 


372  ELDORADO. 

twenty  feet  in  height.  It  is  difficult  to  distinguish 
this  plant  from  the  mandioc,  which  is  called  "  wild 
yucca  j  "  and  this,  "  sweet  yucca."  This  may  be  eaten 
raw;  but  the  other  is  poisonous  until  subjected  to 
heat  in  cooking,  and  then  is  perfectly  wholesome. 
The  yucca  -answers  the  same  purpose  in  Peru  that 
the  mandioc  does  in  Brazil.  It  is  the  general  substi- 
tute for  bread,  and,  roasted  or  boiled,  is  very  pleasant 
to  the  taste.  The  Indians  also  make  from  it  an  intoxi- 
cating drink.  Each  plant  will  give  from  twenty  to 
twenty-five  pounds  of  the  eatable  root,  which  grows 
in  clusters  like  the  potato,  and  some  tubers  of  which 
are  as  long  and  thick  as  a  man's  arm. 


CHAPTER   XII. 

HERNDON'S  EXPEDITION  CONTINUED. 

the  4th  of  July,  the  travellers  arrived  at  the 
great  mining  station  of  Cerro  Pasco.  The 
weather  was  so  cold,  that  the  lieutenant,  not  being 
quite  well,  sat  by  the  fire  all  day,  trying  to  keep  him- 
self warm.  The  town  is  a  most  curious-looking  place, 
entirely  honey-combed,  and  having  the  mouths  of 
mines,  some  of  them  two  or  three  yards  in  diameter, 
gaping  everywhere.  From  the  top  of  a  hill,  the 
best  view  is  obtained  of  the  whole.  Vast  pits,  called 
Tajos,  surround  this  hill,  from  which  many  millions  of 
silver  have  been  taken ;  and  the  miners  are  still  bur- 
rowing, like  so  many  rabbits,  in  their  bottoms  and 
sides.  The  hill  is  penetrated  in  every  direction  ;  and 
it  would  not  be  surprising  if  it  should  cave  in,  any 
day,  and  bury  many  in  its  ruins.  The  falling-in  of 
mines  is  of  frequent  occurrence  :  one  caved  in,  some 
years  ago,  and  buried  three  hundred  persons.  An 

373 


374  ELDORADO. 

English  company  undertook  mining  here  in  f825,  and 
failed.  Vast  sums  have  been  spent  in  constructing 
tunnels,  and  employing  steam  machinery  to  drain  the 
mines;  and  the  parties  still  persevere,  encouraged  by 
discovering,  that,  the  lower  they  penetrate,  the  richer 
are  the  ores.  The  yield  of  these  mines  is  about  two 
million  dollars'  worth  a  year,  which  is  equal  to  the 
yield  of  all  the  other  mines  of  Peru  together. 

The  lieutenant  found  the  leading  people  here,  as 
well  as  at  Tarma,  enthusiastic  on  the  subject  of  open- 
ing the  Amazon  to  foreign  commerce.  It  will  be  a 
great  day  for  them,  they  say,  when  the  Americans 
get  near  them  with  a  steamer. 

On  the  14th  of  July,  they  arrived  at  a  spot  of  marshy 
ground,  from  which  trickled  in  tiny  streams  the  wa- 
ters, which,  uniting  with  others,  swell  till  they  form 
the  broad  River  Huallaga,  one  of  the  head  tributaries 
of  the  Amazon.  Their  descent  was  now  rapid ;  and 
the  next  day  they  found  themselves  on  a  sudden 
among  fruit-trees,  with  a  patch  of  sugar-cane,  on  the 
banks  of  the  stream.  The  sudden  transition  from 
rugged  mountain-peaks,  where  there  was  no  cultiva- 
tion, to  a  tropical  vegetation,  was  marvellous.  Two 
miles  farther  on,  they  came  in  sight  of  a  pretty  vil- 
lage, almost  hidden  in  the  luxuriant  vegetation.  The 


VALLEY  OF  THE  AMAZON  CONTINUED.          375 

whole  valley  here  becomes  very  beautiful.  The  land, 
which  is  a  rich  river-bottom,  is  laid  off  into  alternate 
fields  of  sugar-cane  and  alfalfa.  The  blended  green 
and  yellow  of  this  growth,  divided  by  willows,  inter- 
spersed with  fruit-trees,  and  broken  into  wavy  lines 
by  the  serpentine  course  of  the  river,  presented  a 
scene  which  filled  them  with  pleasurable  emotions, 
and  indicated  that  they  had  exchanged  a  semi-barba- 
rous for  a  civilized  society. 

The  party  had  had  no  occasion  to  complain  of  want 
of  hospitality  in  any  part  of  their  route  j  but  here  they 
seemed  to  have  entered  upon  a  country  where  that 
virtue  flourished  most  vigorously,  having  at  its  com- 
mand the  means  of  gratifying  it.  The  owner  of  the 
hacienda  of  Quicacan,  an  English  gentleman  named 
Dyer,  received  the  lieutenant  and  his  large  party  ex- 
actly as  if  it  were  a  matter  of  course,  and  as  if  they 
had  quite  as  much  right  to  occupy  his  house  as  they 
had  to  enter  an  inn.  The  next  day  they  had  an 
opportunity  to  compare  with  the  Englishman  a  fine 
specimen  of  the  Peruvian  country  gentleman.  Col. 
Lucar  is  thus  described :  "  He  is  probably  the  richest 
and  most  influential  man  in  the  province.  He  seems 
to  have  been  the  father  of  husbandry  in  these  parts, 
and  is  the  very  type  of  the  old  landed  proprietor  of 


376  ELDORADO. 

Virginia,  who  has  always  lived  upon  his  estates,  and 
attended  personally  to  their  cultivation.  Seated  at 
the  head  of  his  table,  with  his  hat  on  to  keep  the 
draught  from  his  head,  and  which  he  would  insist  upon 
removing  unless  I  would  wear  mine ;  his  chair  sur- 
rounded by  two  or  three  little  negro  children,  whom 
he  fed  with  bits  from  his  plate ;  and  attending  with 
patience  and  kindness  to  the  clamorous  wants  of  a 
pair  of  splendid  peacocks,  a  couple  of  small  parrots  of 
brilliant  and  variegated  plumage,  and  a  beautiful  and 
delicate  monkey,  —  I  thought  I  had  never  seen  a  more 
perfect  pattern  of  the  patriarch.  His  kindly  and 
affectionate  manner  to  his  domestics,  and  to  his  little 
grand-children,  a  pair  of  sprightly  boys,  who  came  in 
the  evening  from  the  college,  was  also  very  pleasing." 
The  mention  of  a  college  in  a  region  in  some  respects 
so  barbarous  may  surprise  our  readers;  but  such 
there  is.  It  has  a  hundred  pupils,  an  income  of  sev- 
enty-five thousand  dollars  yearly,  chemical  and  phi- 
losophical apparatus,  and  one  thousand  specimens  of 
European  minerals. 

Ijurra,  our  lieutenant's  Peruvian  companion,  had 
written  to  the  governor  of  the  village  of  Tingo  Maria, 
the  head  of  canoe  navigation  on  the  Huallaga,  to  send 


VALLEY  OF  THE  AMAZON  CONTINUED.          377 

Indians  to  meet  the  travellers  here,  and  take  their 
luggage  on  to  the  place  of  embarkation. 

July  30.  —  The  Indians  came  shouting  into  the 
farm-yard,  thirteen  in  number.  They  were  young, 
slight,  but  muscular-looking  fellows,  and  wanted  to 
shoulder  the  trunks,  and  be  off  at  once.  The  lieuten- 
ant, however,  gave  them  some  breakfast ;  and  then 

ff 

the  party  set  forward,  and,  after  a  walk  of  six  miles, 
reached  the  river,  and  embarked  in  the  canoe.  Two 
Indian  laborers,  called  peons,  paddled  the  canoe,  and 
managed  it  very  well.  The  peons  cooked  their  din- 
ner of  cheese  and  rice,  and  made  them  a  good  cup 
of  coffee.  They  are  lively,  good-tempered  fellows, 
and,  properly  treated,  make  good  and  serviceable 
travelling  companions.  The  canoe  was  available 
only  in  parts  of  the  river  where  the  stream  was  free 
from  rapids.  Where  these  occur,  the  cargo  must  be 
landed,  and  carried  round.  Lieut.  Herndon  and  his 
party  were  compelled  to  walk  a  good  part  of  the 
distance  to  Tingo  Maria,  which  was  thirty-six  miles 
from  where  they  first  took  the  canoe. 

"  I  saw  here,"  says  our  traveller,  "  the  lucernago, 
or  fire-fly  of  this  country.  It  is  a  species  of  beetle, 
carrying  two  white  lights  in  its  eyes,  or  rather  in  the 
places  where  the  eyes  of  insects  generally  are,  and  a 


378  ELDORADO. 

red  light  between  the  scales  of  the  belly  ;  so  that  it 
reminded  me  somewhat  of  the  ocean  steamers.  They 
are  sometimes  carried  to  Lima  (enclosed  in  an  apart- 
ment cut  into  a  sugar-cane),  where  the  ladies  at  balls 
or  theatres  put  them  in  their  hair  for  ornament." 

At  Tingo  Maria,  their  arrival  was  celebrated  with 
much  festivity.  The  governor  got  up  a  ball  for  them, 
where  there  was  more  hilarity  than  ceremony.  The 
next  morning,  the  governor  and  his  wife  accompanied 
our  friends  to  the  port.  The  governor  made  a  short 
address  to  the  canoe-men,  telling  them  that  their  pas- 
sengers were  "  no  common  persons  ;  that  they  were 
to  have  a  special  care  of  them ;  to  be  very  obedient," 
&c.  They  then  embarked,  and  stood  off;  the  boat- 
men blowing  their  horns,  and  the  party  on  shore  wav- 
ing their  hats,  and  shouting  their  adieus. 

The  party  had  two  canoes,  about  forty  feet  long  by 
two  and  a  half  broad,  each  hollowed  out  of  a  single 
log.  The  rowers  stand  up  to  paddle,  having  one  foot 
in  the  bottom  of  the  boat,  and  the  other  on  the  gun- 
wale. There  is  a  nJan  at  the  bow  of  the  boat  to  look 
out  for  rocks  or  sunken  trees  ahead  ;  and  a  steersman, 
who  stands  on  a  little  platform  at  the  stern  of  the 
boat,  and  guides  her  motions.  When  the  river  was 
smooth,  and  free  from  obstruction,  they  drifted  with 


VALLEY  OF  THE  AMAZON  CONTINUED.          379 

the  current,  the  men  sitting  on  the  trunks  and  boxes, 
chatting  and  laughing  with  each  other ;  but,  when 
they  approached  a  "  bad  place/7  their  serious  looks, 
and  the  firm  position  in  which  each  one  planted  him- 
self at  his  post,  showed  that  work  was  to  be  done. 
When  the  bark  had  fairly  entered  the  pass,  the  rapid 
gestures  of  the  bow-man,  indicating  the  channel;  the 
graceful  position  of  the  steersman,  holding  his  long 
paddle  ;  and  the  desperate  exertions  of  the  rowers,  the 
railroad  rush  of  the  canoes,  and  the  wild  screaming 
laugh  of  the  Indians  as  the  boat  shot  past  the  dan- 
ger,—  made  a  scene  so  exciting  as  to  banish  the 
sense  of  danger. 

After  this  specimen  of  their  travel,  let  us  take  a 
glimpse  of  their  lodging.  "  At  half-past  five,  we 
camped  on  the  beach.  The  first  business  of  the  boat- 
men, when  the  canoe  is  secured,  is  to  go  off  to  the 
woods,  and  cut  stakes  and  palm-branches  to  make  a 
house  for  the  { commander.'  By  sticking  long  poles 
in  the  sand,  chopping  them  half-way  in  two  about 
five  feet  above  the  ground,  and  bending  the  upper 
parts  together,  they  make  in  a  few  minutes  the  frame 
of  a  little  shanty,  which,  thickly  thatched  with  palm- 
leaves,  will  keep  off  the  dew  or  an  ordinary  rain. 
Some  bring  the  drift-wood  that  is  lying  about  the 


380  ELDORADO. 

beach,  and  make  a  fire.  The  provisions  are  cooked 
and  eaten,  the  bedding  laid  down  upon  the  leaves 
that  cover  the  floor  of  the  shanty,  the  mosquito  net- 
tings spread  ;  and  after  a  cup  of  coffee,  a  glass  of  grog, 
and  a  cigar  (if  they  are  to  be  had),  everybody  retires 
for  the  night  by  eight  o'clock.  The  Indians  sleep 
round  the  hut,  each  under  his  narrow  mosquito  cur- 
tain, which  glisten  in  the  moonlight  like  so  many 
tombstones." 

The  Indians  have  very  keen  senses,  and  see  and 
hear  things  that  would  escape  more  civilized  travel- 
lers. One  morning,  they  commenced  paddling  with 
great  vigor ;  for  they  said  they  heard  monkeys  ahead. 
It  was  not  till  after  paddling  a  mile  that  they  reached 
the  place.  "  When  we  came  up  to  them,"  says  the 
lieutenant,  "  we  found  a  gang  of  large  red  monkeys 
in  some  tall  trees  by  the  river-side,  making  a  noise 
like  the  grunting  of  a  herd  of  hogs.  We  landed  j  and, 
in  a  few  moments,  I  found  myself  beating  my  way 
through  the  thick  undergrowth,  and  hunting  monkeys 
with  as  much  excitement  as  I  had  ever  felt  in  hunt- 
ing squirrels  when  a  boy.7'  They  found  the  game 
hard  to  kill,  and  only  got  three,  —  the  lieutenant,  with 
his  rifle,  one ;  and  the  Indians,  with  their  blow-guns, 
two.  The  Indians  roasted  and  ate  theirs,  and  Lieut. 


VALLEY  OF  THE  AMAZON  CONTINUED.          381 

He  radon  tried  to  eat  a  piece  ;  but  it  was  so  tough, 
that  his  teeth  would  make  no  impression  upon  it. 

Aug.  19.  —  The  party  arrived  at  Tarapoto.  It 
is  a  town  of  three  thousand  five  hundred  inhabitants, 
and  the  district  of  which  it  is  the  capital  numbers  six 
thousand.  The  principal  productions  are  rice,  cot- 
ton, and  tobacco;  and  cotton-cloth,  spun  and  woven  by 
the  women,  with  about  as  little  aid  from  machinery 
as  the  women  in  Solomon's  time,  of  whom  we  are 
told,  "  She  layeth  her  hands  to  the  spindle,  and  her 
hands  hold  the  distaff."  The  little  balls  of  cotton 
thread  which  the  women  spin  in  this  way  are  used 
as  currency  (and  this  in  a  land  of  silver-mines),  and 
pass  for  twenty-five  cents  apiece  in  exchange  for 
other  goods,  or  twelve  and  a  half  cents  in  money. 
Most  of  the  trade  is  done  by  barter.  A  cow  is  sold 
for  one  hundred  yards  of  cotton  cloth ;  a  fat  hog,  for 
sixty ;  a  large  sheep,  twelve ;  twenty-five  pounds  of 
salt  fish,  for  twelve  ;  twenty-five  pounds  of  coffee,  six  ; 
a  head  of  plantains,  which  will  weigh  from  forty  to 
fifty  pounds,  for  three  needles;  and  so  forth.  All 
transportation  of  merchandise  by  land  is  made  upon 
the  backs  of  Indians,  for  want  of  roads  suitable  for 
beasts  of  burden.  The  customary  weight  of  a  load 
is  seventy-five  pounds  :  the  cost  of  transportation  to 


ELDORADO. 

Moyobamba,  seventy  miles,  is  six  yards  of  cloth.  It 
is  easy  to  obtain,  in  the  term  of  six  or  eight  days, 
fifty  or  sixty  peons,  or  Indian  laborers,  for  the  trans- 
portation of  cargoes,  getting  the  order  of  the  gover- 
riSr,  and  paying  the  above  price,  and  supporting  the 
peons  on  the  way.  The  town  is  the  most  important 
in  the  province  of  Mainas.  The  inhabitants  are  called 
civilized,  but  have  no  idea  of  what  we  call  comfort  in 
their  domestic  arrangements.  The  houses  are  of 
mud,  thatched  with  palm,  and  have  -uneven  earth 
floors.  The  furniture  consists  of  a  grass  hammock,  a 
standing  bed-place,  a  coarse  table,  and  a  stool  or  two. 
The  governor  of  this  populous  district  wore  no  shoes, 
and  appeared  to  live  pretty  much  like  the  rest  of 
them. 

Vessels  of  five  feet  draught  of  water  may  ascend  the 
river,  at  the  lowest  stage  of  the  water,  to  within  eigh- 
teen miles  of  Tarapoto. 

Our  travellers  accompanied  a  large  fishing-party. 
They  had  four  or  five  canoes,  and  a  large  quantity  of 
barbasco ;  a  root  which  has  the  property  of  stupefy- 
ing, or  intoxicating,  the  fish.  The  manner  of  fishing 
is  to  close  up  the  mouth  of  an  inlet  of  the  river  with 
a  net-work  made  of  reeds  ;  and  then,  mashing  the  bar- 
basco-root  to  a  pulp,  throw  it  into  the  water.  This 


VALLEY  OF  THE  AMAZON  CONTINUED.          383 

turns  the  water  white,  and  poisons  it;  so  that  the  fish 
soon  begin  rising  to  the  surface,  dead,  and 'are  taken 
into  the  canoes  with  small  tridents,  or  pronged  sticks. 
Almost  at  the  moment  of  throwing  the  barbasco  into 
the  water,  the  smaller  fish  rise  to  the  surface,  and  die 
in  one  or  two  minutes  ;  the  larger  fish  survive  longer. 

The  salt  fish,  which  constitutes  an  important  arti- 
cle of  food  and  also  of  barter  trade,  is  brought  from 
down  the  river  in  large  pieces  of  about  eight  pounds 
each,  cut  from  the  vaca  marina,  or  sea-cow,  also 
found  in  our  Florida  streams,  and  there  called  mana- 
tee. It  is  found  in  great  numbers  in  the  Amazon 
and  its  principal  tributaries.  It  is  not,  strictly  speak- 
ing, a  fish,  but  an  animal  of  the  whale  kind,  which 
nourishes  its  young  at  the  breast.  It  is  not  able  to 
leave  the  water  ;  but,  in  feeding,  it  gets  near  the 
shore,  and  raises  its  head  out.  It  is  most  often  taken 
when  feeding. 

Our  travellers  met  a  canoe  of  Indians,  one  man  and 
two  women,  going  up  the  river  for  salt.  They 
bought,  with  beads,  some  turtle-eggs,  and  proposed 
to  buy  a  monkey  they  had ;  but  one  of  the  women 
clasped  the  little  beast  in  her  arms,  and  set  up  a 
great  outcry,  lest  the  man  should  sell  it.  The  man 
wore  a  long  cotton  gown,  with  a  hole  in  the  neck  for 


384  ELDORADO. 

the  head  to  come  through,  and  short,  wide  sleeves. 
He  had  on  his  arm  a  bracelet  of  monkeys'  teeth,  and 
the  women  had  nose-riags  of  white  beads.  Their 
dress  was  a  cotton  petticoat,  tied  round  the  waist ; 
and  all  were  filthy. 

Sept.  1.  —  They  arrived  at  Laguna.  Here  they 
found  two  travelling  merchants,  a  Portuguese  and  a 
Brazilian.  They  had  four  large  boats,  of  about  eight 
tons  each,  and  two  or  three  canoes.  Their  cargo  con- 
sisted of  iron  and  iron  implements,  crockery-ware, 
wine,  brandy,  copper  kettles,  coarse  short  swords  (a 
very  common  implement  of  the  Indians),  guns,  ammu- 
nition, salt,  fish,  &c.}  which  they  expected  to  exchange 
for  straw  hats,  cotton  cloth,  sugar,  coffee,  and  money. 
They  were  also  buying  up  all  the  sarsaparilla  they 
could  find,  and  despatching  it  back  in  canoes.  They 
invited  our  travellers  to  breakfast ;  and  the  lieutenant 
says,  "  I  thought  that  I  never  tasted  any  thing  better 
than  the  farinha,  which  I  saw  now  for  the  first 
time." 

Farinha  is  a  general  substitute  for  bread  in  all  the 
course  of  the  Amazon  below  the  Brazilian  frontier. 
It  is  used  by  all  classes ;  and  the  boatmen  seemed 
always  contented  with  plenty  of  salt  fish  and  farinha. 
The  women  make  it  in  this  way :  They  soak  the  root 


VALLEY  OF    THE  AMAZON  CONTINUED.          385 

of  the  mandioc  in  water  till  it  is   softened  a  little, 
when  they  scrape  off  the   skin,  and   grate  the  root 

upon  a  board,  which  is  made  into  a  rude  grater  by 

• 
being  smeared  with  some  of  the  adhesive  gums  of  the 

forest,  and  then  sprinkled  with  pebbles.  The  white 
grated  pulp  is  put  into  a  conical-shaped  bag  made  of 
the  coarse  fibres  of  the  palm.  The  bag  is  hung  up  to  • 
a  peg  driven  into  a  post  of  the  hut;  a  lever  is  put 
through  a  loop  at  the  bottom  of  the  bag ;  the  short  end 
of  the  lever  is  placed  under  a  chock  nailed  to  the 
post  below ;  and  the  woman  hangs  her  weight  on  the 
long  end.  This  elongates  the  bag,  and  brings  a  heavy 
pressure  upon  the  mass  within,  causing  the  juice  to 
ooze  out  through  the  wicker-work  of  the  bag.  When 
sufficiently  pressed,  the  mass  is  put  on  the  floor  of  a 

mud  oven  ;  heat  is  applied,  and  it  is  stirred  with  a 

• 

stick  till  it  granulates  into  very  irregular  grains,  and 
is  sufficiently  toasted  to  drive  off  all  the  poisonous 
qualities  which  it  has  in  a  crude  state.  It  is  then 
packed  in  baskets  (lined  and  covered  with  palrn- 
Jeaves)  of  about  sixty-four  pounds'  weight,  which  are  - 
generally  sold  all  along  the  river  at  from  seventy- 
five  cents  to  one  dollar.  The  sediment  of  the  juice 
is  tapioca,  and  is  used  to  make  custards,  puddings, 
starch,  &c.  It  will  surprise  some  of  our  readers  to 

25 


ELDORADO. 

be  told  that  the  juice  extracted  in  the  preparation  of 
these  wholesome  and  nutritive  substances  is  a  pow- 
erful poison,  and  used  by  the  Indians  for  poisoning 
the  points  of  their  arrows. 


CHAPTER    XIII. 

HERNDON'S  EXPEDITION  CONTINUED. 

Huallaga  is  navigable,  for  vessels  drawing 
five  feet  depth  of  water,  285  miles ;  and  forty 
miles  farther  for  canoes.  Our  travellers  had  now  ar- 
rived at  its  junction  with  the  Amazon ;  and  their  first 
sight  of  its  waters  is  thus  described :  "  The  "march 
of  the  great  river  in  its  silent  grandeur  was  sublime ; 
but  in  the  untamed  might  of  its  turbid  waters,  as 
they  cut  away  its  banks,  tore  down  the  gigantic  deni- 
zens of  the  forest,  and  built  up  islands,  it  was  awful. 
I  was  reminded  of  our  Mississippi  at  its  topmost  flood; 
but  this  stream  lacked  the  charm  which  the  plantation 
upon  the  bank,  the  city  upon  the  bluff,  and  the  steam- 
boat upon  the  waters,  lend  to  its  fellow  of  the  North. 
But  its  capacities  for  trade  and  commerce  are  incon- 
ceivably great ;  and  to  the  touch  of  steam,  settlement, 
and  cultivation,  this  majestic  stream  and  its  mag- 
nificent water-shed  would  start  up  in  a  display  of 

387 


388  ELDORADO. 

industrial  results  that  would  make  the  Valley  of  the 
Amazon  one  of  the  most  enchanting  regions  on  the 
face  of  the  earth." 

Lieut.  Herndon  speaks  of  the  Valley  of  the  Ama- 
zon in  language  almost  as  enthusiastic  as  that  of  Sir 
Walter  Raleigh :  "  From  its  mountains  you  may  dig 
silver,  iron,  coal,  copper,  zinc,  quicksilver,  and  tin ; 
from  the  sands  of  its  tributaries  you  may  wash  gold, 
diamonds,  and  precious  stones ;  from  its  forests  you 
may  gather  drugs  of  virtues  the  most  rare,  spices  of 
aroma  the  most  exquisite,  gums  and  resins  of  the  most 
varied  and  useful  properties,  dyes  of  hue  the  most 
brilliant,  with  cabinet  and  building  woods  of  the  finest 
polish  and  the  most  enduring  texture.  Its  climate  is 
an  everlasting  summer,  and  its  harvest  perennial." 

Sept.  8.  —  The  party  encamped  at  night  on  an 
island  near  the  middle  of  the  river.  "  The  Indians, 
cooking  their  big  monkeys  over  a  large  fire  on  the 
beach,  presented  a  savage  and  most  picturesque 
scene.  They  looked  more  like  devils  roasting  human 
beings,  than  any  thing  mortal."  We  ask  ourselves, 
on  reading  this,  whether  some  such  scene  may  not 
have  given  rise  to  the  stories  of  cannibalism  which 
Raleigh  and  others  record. 

They  arrived  at  Nauta,  a  village  of  a  thousand  in- 


VALLEY  OF  THE  AMAZON   CONTINUED.          389 

habitants,  mostly  Indians.  The  governor  of  the  district 
received  them  hospitably.  Each  district  has  its  gov- 
ernor;  and  each  town  its  lieutenant-governor.  These 
are  of  European  descent.  The  other  authorities  of  a 
town^are  curacas,  captains,  alcades,  and  constables. 
All  these  are  Indians.  The  office  of  curaca  is  heredi- 
tary, and  is  not  generally  interfered  with  by  the  white 
governor.  The  Indians  treat  their  curaca  with  great 
respect,  and  submit  to  corporal  punishment  at  his 
mandate. 

Sarsaparilla  is  one  of  the  chief  articles  of  produce 
collected  here.  It  is  a  vine  of  sufficient  size  to  shoot 
up  fifteen  or  twenty  feet  from  the  root  without  sup- 
port. It  thus  embraces  the  surrounding  trees,  and 
spreads  to  a  great  distance.  The  main  root  sends  out 
many  tendrils,  generally  about  the  thickness  of  a 
straw,  and  five  feet  long.  These  are  gathered,  and 
tied  up  in  bundles  of  about  an  arroba,  or  thirty-two 
pounds'  weight.  It  is  found  on  the  banks  of  almost 
every  river  of  the  region ;  but  many  of  these  are  not 
worked,  on  account  of  the  savages  living  on  them, 
who  attack  the  parties  that  come  to  gather  it.  The 
price  in  Nauta  is  two  dollars  the  arroba,  and  in  Eu- 
rope from  forty  to  sixty  dollars. 

From  Nauta,  Lieut.  Herndon   ascended    the  Uca- 


390  ELDORADO. 

yali,  a  branch  of  the  Amazon,  stretching  to  the 
north-west  in  a  direction  somewhat  parallel  to  the 
Huallaga.  There  is  the  essential  difference  between 
the  two  rivers,  as  avenues  for  commerce,  that  the 
Ucayali  is  still  in  the  occupation  of  savage  tribes,  un- 
christianized  except  where  under  the  immediate  influ- 
ence of  the  mission  stations  planted  among  them  \ 
while  the  population  of  the  Huallaga  is  tolerably  ad- 
vanced in  civilization.  The  following  sentences  will 
give  a  picture  of  the  Indians  of  the  Ucayali :  "  These 
people  cannot  count,  and  I  can  never  get  from  them 
any  accurate  idea  of  numbers.  They  are  very  little 
removed  above  '  the  beasts  that  perish.'  They  are 
filthy,  and  covered  with  sores.  The  houses  are  very 
large,  between  thirty  and  forty  feet  in  length,  and  ten 
or  fifteen  in  breadth.  They  consist  of  immense  roofs 
of  small  poles  and  canes,  thatched  with  palm,  and  sup- 
ported by  short  stakes,  four  feet  high,  planted  in  the 
ground  three  or  four  feet  apart,  and  having  the  spaces, 
except  between  two  in  front,  filled  in  with  cane.  Tfrey 
have  no  idea  of  a  future  state,  and  worship  nothing. 
But  they  can  make  bows  and  canoes ;  and  their  women 
weave  a  coarse  cloth  from  cotton,  and  dye  it.  Their 
dress  is  a  long  cotton  gown.  They  paint  the  face,  and 
wear  ornaments  suspended  from  the  nose  and  lower 
lip." 


VALLEY  OF  THE  AMAZON  CONTINUED.          391 

Next  let  ns  take  a  view  of  the  means  in  operation 
to  elevate  these  people  to  civilization  and  Christianity. 
Sarayacu  is  a  missionary  station,  governed  by  four 
Franciscan  friars,  who  are  thus  described :  "  Father 
Calvo,  meek  and  humble  in  personal  concerns,  yet  full 
of  zeal  and  spirit  for  his  office,  clad  in  his  long  serge 
gown,  belted  with  a  cord,  with  bare  feet  and  accurate 
tonsure,  habitual  stoop,  and  generally  bearing  upon 
his  shoulder  a  beautiful  and  saucy  bird  of  the  parrot 
kind,  was  my  beau-ideal  of  a  missionary  monk.  Bre- 
gati  is  a  young  and  handsome  Italian,  whom  Father 
Calvo  sometimes  calls  St.  John.  Lorente  is  a  tall, 
grave,  and  cold-looking  Catalan.  A  lay-brother  named 
Maguin,  who  did  the  cooking,  and  who  was  unwearied 
in  his  attentions  to  us,  made  up  the  establishment.  I 
was  sick  here,  and  think  that  I  shall  ever  remember 
with  gratitude  the  affectionate  kindness  of  these  pious 
and  devoted  friars  of  St.  Francis." 

The  government  is  paternal.  The  Indians  recog- 
nize in  the  "  padre  "  the  power  to  appoint  and  remove 
curacas,  captains,  and  other  officers  ;  to  inflict  stripes, 
and  to  confine  in  the  stocks.  They  obey  the  priests' 
orders  readily,  and  seem  tractable  and  docile.  The 
Indian  men  are  drunken  and  lazy :  the  women  do  most 
of  the  work;  and  their  reward  is  to  be  mal-treated 


392  ELDORADO. 

by  their  husbands,  and,  in  their  drunken  frolics,  to  be 
cruelly  beaten,  and  sometimes  badly  wounded. 

Our  party  returned  to  the  Amazon ;  and  we  find 
occurring  in  their  narrative  names  which  are  familiar 
to  us  in  the  history  of  our  previous  adventurers.  They 
touched  at  Omaguas,  the  port  where  Madame  Godin 
found  kind  friends  in  the  good  missionary  and  the 
governor,  and  where  she  embarked  on  her  way  to 
the  galiot  at  Loreto  ;  and  they  passed  the  mouth  of  the 
Napo,  which  enters  the  Amazon  from  the  north,  —  the 
river  down  which  Orellana  passed  in  the  first  adven- 
ture. The  lieutenant  says,  "  We  spoke  two  canoes 
that  had  come  from  near  Quito  by  the  Napo.  There 
are  few  Christianized  towns  on  the  Napo ;  and  the 
rewers  of  the  boats  were  a  more  savage-looking  set 
than  I  had  seen,"  —  so  slow  has  been  the  progress  of 
civilization  in  three  hundred  years. 

The  Ajnazon  seems  to  be  the  land  of  monkeys.  Our 
traveller  says, "  I  bought  a  young  monkey  of  an  Indian 
woman  to-day.  It  had  coarse  gray  and  white  hair ; 
and  that  on  the  top  of  its  head  was  stiff,  like  the  quills 
of  the  porcupine,  and  smoothed  down  in  front  as  if  it 
had  been  combed.  I  offered  the  little  fellow  some 
plantain ;  but,  finding  he  would  not  eat,  the  woman 
took  him,  and  put  him  to  her  breast,  when  he  sucked 


VALLEY  OF  THE  AMAZON  CONTINUED.          393 

away  manfully  and  with  great  gusto.  She  weaned 
him  in  a  week,  so  that  he  would  eat  plantain  mashed 
up,  and  put  into  his  mouth  in  small  bits;  but  the  little 
beast  died  of  mortification  because  I  would  not  let 
him  sleep  with' his  arms  around  my  neck.7' 

They  got  from  the  Indians  some  of  the  milk  from 
the  cow-tree.  This  the  Indians  drink,  when  fresh; 
and,  brought  in  a  calabash,  it  had  a  foamy  appear- 
ance, as  if  just  drawn  from  the  cow.  It,  however,  co- 
agulates very  soon,  and  becomes  as  hard  and  tenacious 
as  glue.  It  does  not  appear  to  be  as  important  an 
article  of  subsistence  as  one  would  expect  from  the 
name. 

Dec.  2.  —  They  arrived  at  Loreto,  the  frontier 
town  of  the  Peruvian  territory,  and  which  reminds 
us  again  of  Madame  Godin,  who  there  joined  the  Por- 
tuguese galiot.  Loreto  is  situated  on  an  eminence  on 
the  left  bank  of  the  river,  which  is  here  three-fourths 
of  a  mile  wide,  and  one  hundred  feet  deep.  There 
are  three  mercantile  houses  in  Loreto,  which  do  a 
business  of  about  ten  thousand  dollars  a  year.  The 
houses  at  Loreto  are  better  built  and  better  furnished 
than  those  of  the  towns  on  the  river  above.  The  popu- 
lation of  the  place  is  two  hundred  and  fifty,  made  up 
of  Brazilians,  mulattoes,  negroes,  and  a  few  Indians. 


394  ELDORADO. 

At  the  next  town,  Tabatinga,  the  lieutenant  entered 
the  territory  of  Brazil.  When  his  boat,  bearing  the 
American  flag,  was  descried  at  that  place,  the  Brazi- 
lian flag  was  hoisted;  and  when  the  lieutenant  landed, 
dressed  in  uniform,  he  was  received  by  the  command- 
ant, also  in  uniform,  to  whom  he  presented  his  pass- 
port from  the  Brazilian  minister  at  Washington.  As 
soon  as  this  document  was  perused,  and  the  lieuten- 
ant's rank  ascertained,  a  salute  of  seven  guns  was 
fired  from  the  fort ;  and  the  commandant  treated  him 
with  great  civility,  and  entertained  him  at  his  table, 
giving  him  roast  beef,  which  was  a  great  treat. 

It  was  quite  pleasant,  after  coming  from  the  Peru- 
vian villages,  which  are  all  nearly  hidden  in  the 
woods,  to  see  that  Tabatinga  had  the  forest  cleared 
away  from  about  it;  so  that  a  space  of  forty  or  fifty 
acres  was  covered  with  green  grass,  and  had  a  grove 
of  orange-trees  in  its  midst.  The  commandant  told 
him  that  the  trade  of  the  river  was  increasing  very 
fast;  that,  in  1849,  scarce  one  thousand  dollars'  worth 
of  goods  passed  up;  in  1850,  two  thousand  five  hun- 
dred dollars  ;  and  this  year,  six  thousand  dollars. 

The  sarsaparilla  seems  thus  far  to  have  been  the 
principal  article  of  commerce  ;  but  here  they  find 
another  becoming  of  importance,  —  manteca,  or  oil 


VALLEY  OF  THE  AMAZON  CONTINUED.          395 

made  of  turtle-eggs.  The  season  for  making  man- 
teca  generally  ends  by  the  1st  of  November.  A  com- 
mandant is  appointed  every  year  to  take  care  of  the 
beaches,  prevent  disorder,  and  administer  justice. 
Sentinels  are  placed  at  the  beginning  of  August,  when 
the  turtles  commence  depositing  their  eggs.  They 
see  that  no  one  wantonly  interferes  with  the  turtles, 
or  destroys  the  eggs.  The  process  of  making  the  oil 
is  very  disgusting.  The  eggs  are  collected,  thrown 
into  a  canoe,  and  trodden  into  a  mass  with  the  feet. 
Water  is  poured  on,  and  the  mass  is  left  to  stand  in 
the  sun  for  several  days.  The  oil  rises  to  the  top,  is 
skimmed  off,  and  boiled  in  large  copper  boilers.  It  is 
then  put  in  earthen  pots  of  about  forty-five  pounds' 
weight.  Eacli  pot  is  worth,  on  the  beach,  one  dollar 
and  thirty  cents ;  and  at  Para,  from  two  and  a  half  to 
three  dollars.  The  beaches  of  the  Amazon  and  its 
tributaries  yield  from  five  to  six  thousand  pots 
annually.  It  is  used  for  the  same  purposes  as  lard 
with  us. 


CHAPTER    XIV. 

HERNDON'S  EXPEDITION  CONCLUDED. 

/^VN  Jan.  4,  at  about  the  point  of  the  junction 
of  the  Purus  River  with  the  Amazon,  Lieut. 
Herndon  remarks,  "  The  banks  of  the  river  are 
now  losing  the  character  of  savage  and  desolate 
solitude  that  characterizes  them  above,  and  begin  to 
show  signs  of  habitation  and  cultivation.  We  passed 
to-day  several  farms,  with  neatly  framed  and  plastered 
houses,  and  a  schooner-rigged  vessel  lying  off  several 
of  them." 

They  arrived  at  the  junction  of  the  River  Negro. 
This  is-  one  of  the  largest  of  the  tributaries  of  the 
Amaion,  and  derives  its  name  from  the  blackness  of 
its  waters.  When  taken  up  in  a  tumbler,  the  water 
is  a  light-red  color,  like  a  pale  juniper- water,  and  is 
probably  colored  by  some  such  berry.  This  river, 
opposite  the  town  of  Barra,  is  about  ^  mile  and  a  half 
wide,  and  very  beautiful.  It  is  n^igable  for  almost 


HERNDON'S  EXPEDITION  CONCLUDED.  397 

any  draughts  to  the  Masaya,  a  distance  of  about  four 
hundred  miles :  there  the  rapids  commence,  and  the 
farther  ascent  must  be  made  in  boats.  By  this  river, 
a  communication  exists  with  the  Orinoco,  by  means 
of  a  remarkable  stream,  the  Cassaquiare,  which  seems 
to  have  bee-n  formed  for  the  sole  purpose  of  connect- 
ing these  two  majestic  rivers,  and  the  future  dwellers 
upon  them,  in  the  bonds  of  perpetual  union.  Hum- 
boldt,  the  great  traveller  and  philosopher,  thus  speaks 
of  it,  "  The  Cassaquiare,  as  broad  as  the  Rhine,  and 
whose  course  is  one  hundred  and  eighty  miles  in 
length,  will  not  much  longer  form  in  vain  a  naviga- 
ble canal  between  two  basins  of  rivers  which  have  a 
surface  of  one  hundred  and  ninety  thousand  square 
leagues.  The  grain  of  New  Grenada  will  be  carried 
to  the  banks  of  the  Rio  Negro ;  boats  will  descend 
from  the  sources  of  the  Napo  and  the  Ucayali,  from 
the  Andes  of  Quito  and  Upper  Peru,  to  the  mouths  of 
the  Orinoco.  A  country  nine  or  ten  times  larger 
than  Spain,  and  enriched  with  the  most  varied  pro- 
ductions, is  accessible  in  every  direction  by  the 
medium  of  the  natural  canal  of  the  Cassaquiare  and 
the  bifurcation  of  the  rivers." 

The  greatest  of  all  the  tributaries  of  the  Amazon 
is  the  Madeira,  whose  junction  our  travellers  next 


398  ELDORADO. 

% 

reached.  For  four  hundred  and  fifty  miles  from  its 
mouth,  there  is  good  navigation  :  then  occur  cascades, 
which  are  navigable  only  for  boats,  and  occupy  three 
hundred  and  fifty  miles,  above  which  the  river  is 
navigable  for  large  vessels,  by  its  great  tributaries, 
into  Bolivia  and  Brazil. 

They  next  entered  the  country  where  the  cocoa  is 
regularly  cultivated  ;  and  the  banks  of  the  river  pre- 
sent a  much  less  desolate  and  savage  appearance  than 
they  do  above.  The  cocoa-trees  have  a  yellow-colored 
leaf;  and  this,  together  with  their  regularity  of  size, 
distinguishes  them  from  the  surrounding  forest. 
Lieut.  Herndon  says,  "  I  do  not  know  a  prettier  place 
than  one  of  these  plantations.  The  trees  interlock 
their  branches,  and,  with  their  large  leaves,  make  a 
shade  impenetrable  to  any  ray  of  the  sun ;  and  the 
large,  golden-colored  fruits,  hanging  from  branch  and 
trunk,  shine  through  the  green  with  a  most  beautiful 
effect.  This  is  the  time  of  the  harvest ;  and  we  found 
the  people  of  every  plantation  engaged  in  the  open 
space  before  the  house  in  breaking  open  the  shells  of 
the  fruit,  and  spreading  the  seed  to  dry  in  the  sun. 
They  make  a  pleasant  drink  for  a  hot  day  by  pressing 
out  the  juice  of  the  gelatinous  pulp  that  envelops  the 
seeds.  It  is  called  cocoa-wine  :  it  is  a  white,  viscid 


HERNDON'S  EXPEDITION  CONCLUDED.  399 

liquor,  has  an  agreeable,  acid  taste,  and  is  very  re- 
freshing." 

We  must  hasten  on,  and  pass  without  notice  many 
spots  of  interest  on  the  river ;  but,  as  we  have  now 
reached  a  comparatively  civilized  and  known  region, 
it  is  less  necessary  to  be  particular.  The  Tapajos 
River  stretches  its  branches  to  the  town  of  Diaman- 
tino,  situated  at  the  fooj:  of  the  mountains,  where 
diamonds  are  found.  Lieut.  Herndon  saw  some  of 
the  diamonds  and  gold-sand  in  the  possession  of  a  resi- 
dent of  Santarem,  who  had  traded  much  on  the  river. 
The  gold-dust  appeared  to  him  equal  in  quality  to  that 
he  had  seen  from  California.  Gold  and  diamonds, 
which  are  always  united  in  this  region  as  in  many 
others,  are  found  especially  in  the  numerous  water- 
courses, and  also  throughout  the  whole  country. 
After  the  rains,  the  children  of  Diamantino  hunt  for 
the  gold  contained  in  the  earth  even  of  the  streets, 
and  in  the  bed  of  the  River  Ouro,  which  passes  through 
the  city  ;  and  they  often  collect  considerable  quanti- 
ties. It  is  stated  that  diamonds  are  sometimes  found 
in  the  stomachs  of  the  fowls.  The  quantity  of  dia- 
monds found  in  a  year  varies  from  two  hundred  and 
fifty  to  five  hundred  oitavas  •  the  oitava  being  about 
seventeen  carats.  The  value  depends  upon  the  qual- 


400  ELDORADO. 

ity  and  size  of  the  specimen,  and  can  hardly  be  re« 
duced  to  an  estimate.  It  is  seldom  that  a  stone  of 
over  half  an  oitava  is  found ;  and  such  a  one  is  worth 
from  two  to  three  hundred  dollars. 

As  an  offset  to  the  gold  and  diamonds,  we  have  this 
picture  of  the  climate  :  "  From  the  rising  to  the  set- 
ting of  the  sun,  clouds  of  stinging  insects  blind  the 
traveller,  and  render  him % frantic  by  the  torments 
they  cause.  Take  a  handful  of  the  finest  sand,  and 
throw  it  above  your  head,  and  you  would  then  have 
but  a  faint  idea  of  the  number  of  these  demons  who 
tear  the  skin  to  pieces.  It  is  true,  these  insects  dis- 
appear at  night,  but  only  to  give  place  to  others  yet 
more  formidable.  Large  bats  (true,  thirsty  vampires) 
literally  throng  the  forests,  cling  to  the  hammocks, 
and,  finding  a  part  of  the  body  exposed,  rest  lightly 
there,  and  drain  it  of  blood.  The  alligators  are  so 
numerous,  and  the  noise  they  make  so  frightful,  that 
it  is  impossible  to  sleep." 

At  Santarem  they  were  told  the  tide  was  percepti- 
ble, but  did  not  perceive  it.  At  Gurupa  it  was  very 
apparent.  This  point  is  about  five  hundred  miles 
from  the  sea.  About  thirty-fiv^  miles  below  Gurmpa 
commences  the  great  estuary  of  the  Amazon.  The 
river  suddenly  flows  out  into  an  immense  bay,  which 


HERN  DON'S  EXPEDITION  CONCLUDED.  401 

might  appropriately  be  called  the  "  bay  of  a  thousand 
islands  ;  "  for  it  is  cut  up  into  innumerable  channels. 
The  travellers  ran  for  days  through  channels  varying 
from  fifty  to  five  hundred  yards  in  width,  between 
numberless  islands.  This  is  the  India-rubber  country. 
The  shores  are  low  :  indeed,  one  seldom  sees  the  land 
at  all ;  the  trees  on  the  banks  generally  standing  in 
the  water.  The  party  stopped  at  one  of  the  establish- 
ments for  making  India-rubber.  The  house  was  built 
of  light  poles,  and  on  piles,  to  keep  it  out  of  the 
water,  which  flowed  under  and  around  it.  This  was 
the  store,  and,  rude  as  it  was,  was  a  palace  compared 
to  the  hut  of  the  laborer  who  gathers  the  India-rub- 
ber. The  process  is  as  follows :  A  longitudinal  gash 
is  made  in  the  bark  of  the  tree  with  a  hatchet.  A 
wedge  of  wood  is  inserted  to  keep  the  gash  open  ;  and 
a  small  clay  cup  is  stuck  to  the  tree,  beneath  the  gash. 
The  cups  may  be  stuck  as  close  together  as  possible 
around  the  tree.  In  four  or  five  hours,  the  milk  has 
ceased  to  run,  and  each  wound  has  given  from  three 
to  five  table-spoonfuls.  The  gatherer  then  collects  it 
from  the  cups,  pours  it  into  an  earthen  vessel,  and 
commences  the  operation  of  forming  it  into  shapes, 
and  smoking  it.  This  must  be  done  at  once,  as  the 
juice  soon  coagulates.  A  fire  is  made  on  the  ground, 

26 


402  •  ELDORADO. 

and  a  rude  funnel  placed  over  it  to  collect  the  smoke. 
The  maker  of  the  rubber  now  takes  his  last,  if  he  is 
making  shoes,  or  his  mould,  which  is  fastened  to  the 
end  of  a  stick,  pours  the  milk  over  it  with  a  cup,  and 
passes  it  slowly  several  times  through  the  smoke 
until  it  is  dry.  He  then  pours  on  the  other  coats 
until  he  has  the  required  thickness,  smoking  each 
coating  till  it  is  dry.  From  twenty  to  forty  coats 
make  a  shoe.  The  soles  and  heels  are,  of  course,  given 
more  coats  than  the  body  of  the  shoe.  The  figures 
on  the  shoes  are  made  by  tracing  them  on  the  rubber, 
while  soft,  with  a  coarse  needle,  or  bit  of  wire.  This 
is  done  two  days  after  the  coating.  In  a  week,  the 
shoes  are  taken  from  the  last.  The  coating  occupies 
about  twenty-five  minutes. 

The  tree  is  tall,  straight,  and  has  a  smooth  bark. 
It  sometimes  reaches  a  diameter  of  thirteen  inches  or 
more.  Each  incision  makes  a  rough  wound  on  the 
tree,  which,  although  it  does  not  kill  it,  renders  it 
useless,  because  a  sm9oth  place  is  wanted  to  which 
to  attach  the  cups.  The  milk  is  white  and  tasteless, 
and  may  be  taken  into  the  stomach  with  impunity. 

Our  travellers  arrived  at  Para  on  the  12th  of  April, 
1852,  and  were  most  hospitably  and  kindly  received 
by  Mr.  Norris,  the  American  consul. 


WILLIAM  LEWIS  HEENDON.  403 

» 

The  journey  of  our  travellers  ends  here.  Lieut. 
Herndon's  book  is  full  of  instruction,  conveyed  in  a 
pleasant  style.  He  seerns  to  have  manifested  through- 
out good  judgment,  good  temper,  energy,  and  industry. 
He  had  no  collisions  with  the  authorities  or  with  in- 
dividuals, and,  on  his  part,  seems  to  have  met  friendly 
feelings  and  good  offices  throughout  his  whole  route. 


WILLIAM  LEWIS  HERNDOIST  was  born  in  Fredericksburg,  Va., 
on  the  25th  of  October,  1813.  He  entered  the  navy  at  the  age  of 
fifteen  ;  served  in  the  Mexican  war ;  and  was  afterwards  engaged 
for  three  years,  with  his  brother-in-law,  Lieut.  Maury,  in  the  Na- 
tional Observatory  at  Washington.  In  1851-2,  he  explored  the 
Amazon  River,  under  commission  of  the  United-States  Govern- 
ment. In  1857,  he  was  commander  of  the  steamer  "Central 
America,"  which  left  Havana  for  New  York  on  Sept,  8,  having  on 
board  four  hundred  and  seventy-four  passengers  and  a  crew  of  one 
hundred  and  five  men,  and  about  two  million  dollars  of  gold.  On 
Sept.  11,  during  a  violent  gale  from  the  north-east  and  a  heavy 
sea,  she  sprung  a  leak,  and  sunk,  on  the  evening  of  Sept.  12, 
near  the  outer  edge  of  the  Gulf  Stream,  in  lat.  31°  44'  N.  Only 
one  hundred  and  fifty  of  the  persons  on  board  were  saved,  includ- 
ing the  women  and  children.  The  gallant  commander  of  the 
steamer  was  seen  standing  upon  the  wheel-house  at  the  time  of 
her  sinking. 

In  a  former  chapter,  we  have  told  the  fate  of  Sir  Humphrey 
Gilbert.  How  fair  a  counterpart  of  that  heroic  death  is  this  of 
the  gallant  Herndon  ! 


CHAPTER  XV. 

LATEST    EXPLORATIONS. 

TN  the  year  1845,  an  English  gentleman,  Henry 
Walter  Bates,  visited  the  region  of  the  Amazon 
for  the  purpose  of  scientific  exploration.  He  went 
prepared  to  spend  years  in  the  country,  in  order  to 
study  diligently  its  natural  productions.  His  stay 
was  protracted  until  1859,  during  which  time  he 
resided  successively  at  Para,  Santarem,  Ega,  Barra, 
and  other  places;  making  his  abod%  for  months,  or 
even  years,  in  each.  His  account  of  his  observa- 
tions and  discoveries  was  published  after  his  return, 
and  affords  us  the  best  information  we  possess  re- 
specting the  country,  its  inhabitants,  and  its  produc- 
tions, brought  down  almost  to  the  present  time.  Our 
extracts  relate  to  the  cities,  the  river  and  its  shores, 
the  inhabitants  civilized  and  savage,  the  great  tribu- 
tary rivers,  the  vegetation,  and  the  animals  of  various 
kinds. 

404 


PARA.  405 

Before  proceeding  with  our  extracts,  we  will  re- 
mark the  various  names  of  the  river. 

It  is  sometimes  called,  from  the  name  of  its  discov- 
erer, "  Orellana."  This  name  is  appropriate  and  well- 
sounding,  but  is  not  in  general  use. 

The  name  of  "  Maraiion,"  pronounced  Maranyon, 
is  still  often  used.  It  is  probably  derived  from  the 
natives. 

It  is  called  "  The  River  of  the  Amazons,"  from  the 
fable  of  its  former  inhabitants. 

This  name  is  shortened  into  "  The  Amazons,"  and, 
without  the  plural  sign,  "  The  Amazon,"  in  common 
use. 

Above  the  junction  of  the  River  Negro,  the  river 
is  designated  as  "  The  Upper  Amazon,"  or  "  Soli- 
moens." 

PARA. 

"  On  the  morning- of  the  28th  of  May,  1848,  we  ar- 
rived at  our  destination.  The  appearance  of  the  city 
at  sunrise  was  pleasing  in  the  highest  degree.  It  is 
built  on-  a  low  tract  of  land,  having  only  one  small 
rocky  elevation  at  its  southern  extremity:  it  there- 
fore affords  no  ampnitheatral  view  from  the  river; 
but  the  white  buildings  roofed  with  red  tiles,  the 
numerous  towers  and  cupolas  of  churches  and  con- 


406  ELDORADO. 

vents,  the  crowns  of  palm-trees  reared  above  the 
buildings,  all  sharply  defined  against  the  clear  blue 
sky,  give  an  appearance  of  lightness  and  cheerfulness 
which  is  most  exhilarating.  The  perpetual  forest 
hems  the  city  in  on  all  sides  landwards ;  and,  towards 
the  suburbs,  picturesque  country-houses  are  seen 
scattered  about,  half  buried  in  luxuriant  foliage. 

"  The  impressions  received  during  our  first  walk 
can  never  wholly  fade  from  my  mind.  After  travers- 
ing the  few  streets  of  tall,  gloomy,  convent-looking 
buildings  near  the  port,  inhabited  chiefly  by  mer- 
chants and  shopkeepers  ;  along  which  idle  soldiers, 
dressed  in  shabby  uniforms,  carrying  their  muskets 
carelessly  over  their  arms ;  priests ;  negresses  with 
red  water-jars  on  their  heads;  sad-looking  Indian 
women,  carrying  their  naked  children  astride  on  their 
hips ;  and  other  samples  of  the  motley  life  of  the  place, 
—  were  seen ;  we  passed  down  a  long,  narrow  street 
leading  to  the  suburbs.  Beyond  this,  our  road  lay 
across  a  grassy  common,  into  a  picturesque  lane  lead- 
ing to  the  virgin  forest.  The  long  street  was  in- 
habited by  the  poorer  class  of  the  population.  The 
houses  were  mostly  in  a  dilapidated  condition;  and 
signs  of  indolence  and  neglect  were  everywhere  visi- 
ble. But  amidst  all,  and  compensating  every  defect, 


PARA.  407 

rose  the  overpowering  beauty  of  the  vegetation. 
The  massive  dark  crowns  of  shady  mangoes  were 
seen  everywhere  among  the  dwellings,  amidst  fra- 
grant, blossoming  orange,  lemon,  and  other  tropical 
fruit-trees,  —  some  in  flower,  others  in  fruit  at  va- 
rious stages  of  ripeness.  Here  and  there,  shooting 
above  the  more  dome-like  and  sombre  trees,  were 
the  smooth  columnar  stems  of  palms,  bearing  aloft 
their  magnificent  crowns  of  finely-cut  fronds.  On 
the  boughs  of  the  taller  and  more  ordinary-looking 
trees  sat  tufts  of  curiously  leaved  parasites.  Slender 
woody  lianas  hung  in  festoons  from  the  branches,  or 
were  suspended  in  the  form  of  cords  and  ribbons; 
while  luxuriant  creeping  plants  overran  alike  tree- 
trunks,  roofs,  and  walls,  or  toppled  over  palings  in 
copious  profusion  of  foliage. 

"  As  we  continued  our  walk,  the  brief  twilight  com- 
menced; and  the  sounds  of  multifarious  life  came  from 
the  vegetation  around, — the  whirring  of  cicadas;  the 
shrill  stridulation  of  a  vast  number  of  crickets  and 
grasshoppers,  each  species  sounding  its  peculiar 
note ;  the  plaintive  hooting  of  tree-frogs,  all  blended 
together  in  one  continuous  ringing  sound, — the  audi- 
ble expression  of  the  teeming  profusion  of  Nature. 
This  uproar  of  life,  I  afterwards  found,  never  wholly 


408  ELDORADO. 

ceased,  night  or  day :  in  course  of  time,  I  became, 
like  other  residents,  accustomed  to  it.  After  my  re- 
turn to  England,  the  death-like  stillness  of  summer 
days  in  the  country  appeared  to  me  as  strange  as  the 
ringing  uproar  did  on  my  first  arrival  at  Par&." 

CAMETA. 

"  I  staid  at  Cameta  five  weeks,  and  made  a  consid- 
erable collection  of  the  natural  productions  of  the 
neighborhood.  The  town,  in  1849,  was  estimated  to 
contain  about  five  thousand  inhabitants.  The  pro- 
ductions of  the  district  are  cacao,  India-rubber,  and 
Brazil  nuts.  The  most  remarkable  feature  in  the 
social  aspect  of  the  place  is  the  mixed  nature  of  the 
population,  —  the  amalgamation  of  the  white  and  In- 
dian races  being  here  complete.  The  aborigines 
were  originally  very  numerous  on  the  western  bank 
of  the  Tocantins ;  the  principal  tribe  being  the  Came- 
tas,  from  which  the  city  takes  its  name.  They  were 
a  superior  nation,  settled,  and  attached  to  agriculture, 
and  received  with  open  arms  the  white  immigrants 
who  were  attracted  to  the  district  by  its  fertility, 
natural  beauty,  and  the  healthfulness  of  the  climate. 
The  Portuguese  settlers  were  nearly  all  males.  The 
Indian  women  were  good-looking,  and  made  excellent 


CAMETA.  409 

wives ;  so  the  natural  result  has  been,  in  the  course 
of  two  centuries,  a  complete  blending  of  the  two 
races. 

"  The  town  consists  of  three  long  streets  running 
parallel  to  the  river,  with  a  few  shorter  ones  crossing 
them  at  right  angles.  The  houses  are  very  plain ; 
being  built,  as  usual  in  this  country,  simply  of  a 
strong  framework,  filled  up  with  mud,  and  coated 
with  white  plaster.  A  few  of  them  are  of  two  or 
three  stories.  There  are  three  churches,  and  also  a 
small  theatre,  where  a  company  of  native  actors,  at 
the  time  of  my  visit,  were  representing  light  Portu- 
guese plays  with  considerable  taste  and  ability.  The 
people  have  a  reputation  all  over  the  province  for 
energy  and  perseverance ;  and  it  is  often  said  that 
they  are  as  keen  in  trade  as  the  Portuguese.  The 
lower  classes  are  as  indolent  and  sensual  here  as  in 
other  parts  of  the  province,  —  a  moral  condition  not 
to  be  wondered  at,  where  perpetual  summer  reigns, 
and  where  the  necessaries  of  life  are  so  easily  ob- 
tained. But  they  are  light-hearted,  quick-witted,  com- 
municative, and  hospitable.  I  found  here  a  native 
poet,  who  had  written  some  pretty  verses,  showing 
an  appreciation  of  the  natural  beauties  of  the  coun- 
try ;  and  was  told  that  the  Archbishop  of  Bahia,  the 


410  ELDORADO. 

primate  of  Brazil,  was  a  native  of  Cameta.  It  is  in- 
teresting to  find  the  mamelucos  (half-breeds)  display- 
ing talent  and  enterprise  ;  for  it  shows  that  degene- 
racy does  not  necessarily  result  from  the  mixture  of 
white  and  Indian  blood. 

"  The  forest  behind  Cameta  is  traversed  by  several 
broad  roads,  which  lead  over  undulating  ground  many 
miles  into  the  interior.  They  pass  generally  under 
shade,  and  part  of  the  way  through  groves  of  coffee 
and  orange  trees,  fragrant  plantations  of  cacao,  and 
tracts  of  second-growth  woods.  The  narrow,  broad- 
watered  valleys,  with  which  the  land  is  intersected, 
alone  have  remained  clothed  with  primeval  forest,  at 
least  near  the  town.  The  houses  along  these  beauti- 
ful roads  belong  chiefly  to  mameluco,  mulatto,  and 
Indian  families,  each  of  which  has  its  own  small 
plantation.  There  are  only  a'  few  planters  with  large 
establishments ;  and  these  have  seldom  more  than  a 
dozen  slaves.  Besides  the  main  roads,  there  are  end- 
less by-paths,  which  thread  the  forest,  and  communi- 
cate with  isolated  houses.  Along  these  the  traveller 
may  wander  day  after  day,  without  leaving  the  shade, 
and  everywhere  meet  with  cheerful,  simple,  and  hos- 
pitable people." 


RIVERS  AND   CREEKS.  411 

RIVERS   AND   CREEKS. 

"  We  made  many  excursions  down  the  Irritiri,  and 
saw  much  of  these  creeks.  The  Magoary  is  a  magni- 
ficent channel :  the  different  branches  form  quite  a 
labyrinth,  and  the  land  is  everywhere  of  little  eleva- 
tion. All  these  smaller  rivers  throughout  the  Para 
estuary  are  of  the  nature  of  creeks.  The  land  is  so 
level,  that  the  short  local  rivers  have  no  sources  and 
downward  currents,  like  rivers,  as  we  understand 
them.  They  serve  the  purpose  of  draining  the  land; 
but,  instead  of  having  a  constant  current  one  way, 
they  have  a  regular  ebb  and  flow  with  the  tide.  The 
natives  call  them  igarapeSj  or  canoe-paths.  They  are 
characteristic  of  the  county.  The  land  is  every- 
where covered  with  impenetrable  forests :  the  houses 
and  villages  are  all  on  the  water-side,  and  nearly  all 
communication  is  by  water.  This  semi-aquatic  life 
of  the  people  is  one  of  the  most  interesting  features 
of  the  country.  For  short  excursions,  and  for  fishing 
in  still  waters,  a  small  boat,  called  montaria,  is  uni- 
versally used.  It  is  made  of  five  planks,  —  a  broad 
one  for  the  bottom,  bent  into  the  proper  shape  by 
the  action  of  heat,  two  narrow  ones  for  the  sides, 
and  two  triangular  pieces  for  stem  and  stern.  It  has 


412  ELDORADO. 

no  rudder:  the  paddle  serves  for  both  steering  and 
propelling.  The  montaria  takes  here  the  place  of  the 
horse,  mule,  or  camel  of  other  regions.  Besides  one 
or  more  montarias,  almost  every  family  has  a  larger 
canoe,  called  igarite.  This  is  fitted  with  two  masts, 
a  rudder,  and  keel,  and  has  an  arched  awning  or 
cabin  near  the  stern,  made  of  a  framework  of  tough 
lianas,  thatched  with  palm-leaves.  In  the  igarite, 
they  will  cross  stormy  rivers  fifteen  or  twenty  miles 
broad.  The  natives  are  all  boat-builders.  It  is  often 
remarked  by  white  residents,  that  the  Indian  is  a  car- 
penter and  shipwright  by  intuition.  It  is  astonishing 
to  see  in  what  crazy  vessels  these  people  will  risk 
themselves.  I  have  seen  Indians  cross  rivers  in  a 
leaky  montaria  when  it  required  the  nicest  equili- 
brium to  keep  the  leak  just  above  water:  a  movement 
of  a  hair's-breadth  would  send  all  to  the  bottom ;  but 
they  manage  to  cross  in  safety.  If  a  squall  overtakes 
them  as  they  are  crossing  in  a  heavily-laden  canoe, 
they  all  jump  overboard,  and  swim  about  until  the 
heavy  sea  subsides,  when  they  re-embark." 

JUNCTION  OP  THE   MADEIRA. 

"  Our  course  lay  through  narrow  channels  between 
islands.     We  passed  the  last  of  these,  and  then  be- 


JUNCTION  OF  THE  MADEIRA.  413 

held  to  the  south  a  sea-like  expanse  of  water,  where 
the  Madeira,  the  greatest  tributary  of  the  Amazons, 
after  two  thousand  miles  of  course,  blends  its  waters 
with  those  of  the  king  of  rivers.  I  was  hardly  pre- 
pared for  a  junction  of  waters  on  so  vast  a  scale  as 
this,  now  nearly  nine  hundred  miles  from  the  sea. 
While  travelling  week  after  week  along  the  some- 
what monotonous  stream',  often  hemmed  in  between 
islands,  and  becoming  thoroughly  familiar  with  it,  my 
sense  of  the  magnitude  of  this  vast  water-system  had 
become  gradually  deadened ;  but  this  noble  sight  re- 
newed the  first  feelings  of  wonder.  One  is  inclined, 
in  such  places  as  these,  to  think  the  Paraenses  do 
not  exaggerate  much  when  they  call  the  Amazons 
the  Mediterranean  of  South  America.  Beyond  the 
mouth  of  the  Madeira,  the  Amazons  sweeps  down  in 
a  majestic  reach,  to  all  appearance  not  a  whit  less  in 
breadth  before  than  after  this  enormous  addition  to 
its  waters.  The  Madeira  does  not  ebb  and  flow  si- 
multaneously with  the  Amazons ;  it  rises  and  sinks 
about  two  months  earlier :  so  that  it  was  now  fuller 
than  the  main  river.  Its  current,  therefore,  poured 
forth  freely  from  its  mouth,  carrying  with  it  a  long 
line  of  floating  trees,  and  patches  of  grass,  which  had 
been  torn  from  its  crumbly  banks  in  the  lower  part  of 


414  ELDORADO, 

its  course.  The  current,  however,  did  not  reach  the 
middle  of  the  main  stream,  but  swept  along  nearer  to 
the  southern  shore. 

"  The  Madeira  is  navigable  480  miles  from  its 
mouth :  a  series  of  cataracts  and  rapids  then  com- 
mences, which  extends,  with  some  intervals  of  quiet 
water,  about  160  miles,  beyond  which  is  another  long 
stretch  of  navigable  stream." 

JUNCTION  OF  THE   RIO   NEGRO. 

"A  brisk  wind  from  the  east  sprung  up  early  in 
the  morning  of  the  22d :  we  then  hoisted  all  sail,  and 
made  for  the  mouth  of  the  Rio  Negro.  This  noble 
stream,  at  its  junction  with  the  Amazons,  seems,  from 
its  position,  to  be  a  direct  continuation  of  the  main 
river ;  while  the  Solimoens,  which  joins  it  at  an  angle, 
and  is  somewhat  narrower  than  its  tributary,  appears 
to  be  a  branch,  instead  of  the  main  trunk,  of  the  vast 
water-system. 

"  The  Rio  Negro  broadens  considerably  from  its 
mouth  upward,  and  presents  the  appearance  of  a 
great  lake  ;  its  black-dyed  waters  having  no  current, 
and  seeming  to  be  dammed  up  by  the  impetuous  flow 
of  the  yellow,  turbid  Solimoens,  which  here  belches 
forth  a  continuous  line  of  uprooted  trees,  and  patches 


JUNCTION  OF  THE  RIO  NEGRO.  415 

of  grass,  and  forms  a  striking  contrast  with  its  tribu- 
tary. In  crossing,  we  passed  the  line  a  little  more 
than  half-way  ,over,  where  the  waters  of  the  two 
rivers  meet,  and  are  sharply  demarcated  from  each 
other.  On  reaching  the  opposite  shore,  we  found  a 
remarkable  change.  All  our  insect  pests  had  disap- 
peared, as  if  by  magic,  even  from  the  hold  of  the 
canoe :  the  turmoil  of  an  agitated,  swiftly-flowing 
river,  and  its  torn,  perpendicular,  earthy  banks,  had 
given  place  to  tranquil  water,  and  a  coast  indented 
with  snug  little  bays,  fringed  with  sloping,  sandy 
beaches.  The  low  shore,  and  vivid,  light-green,  end- 
lessly varied  foliage,  which  prevailed  on  the  south 
side  of  the  Amazons,  were  exchanged  for  a  hilly 
country,  clothed  with  a  sombre,  rounded,  and  monot- 
onous forest.  A  light  wind  carried  us  gently  along 
the  coast  to  the  city  of  -Barra,  which  lies  about  seven 
or  eight  miles  within  the  mouth  of  the  river. 

"  The  town  of  Barra  is  built  on  a  tract  of  elevated 
but  very  uneven  land,  on  the  left  bank  of  the  Kio 
Negro,  and  contained,  in  1850,  about  three  thousand 
inhabitants.  It  is  now  the  principal  station  for  the 
lines  of  steamers  which  were  established  in  1853;  and 
passengers  and  goods  are  trans-shipped  here  for  the 
Solimoens  and  Pern.  A  steamer  runs  once  a  fort- 


416  ELDORADO. 

night  between  Para  and  Barra ;  and  another  as  often 
between  this  place  and  Nauta,  in  the  Peruvian  ter- 
ritory." 

MAMELUCOS,   OB  HALF-BREEDS. 

"  We  landed  at  one  of  the  cacao-plantations.  The 
house  was  substantially  built ;  the  walls  formed  of 
strong,  upright  posts,  lathed  across,  plastered  with 
mud,  and  whitewashed  ;  and  the  roof  tiled.  The  fam- 
ily were  Mamelucos,  or  offspring  of  the  European  and 
the  Indian.  They  seemed  to  be  an  average  sample 
of  the  poorer  class  of  cacao-growers.  All  were  loosely 
dressed,  and  barefooted.  A  broad  veranda  extended 
along  one  side  of  the  house,  the  floor  of  which  was 
simply  the  well-trodden  earth;  and  here  hammocks 
were  slung  between  the  bare  upright  supports,  a 
large  rush-mat  being  spread  on  the  ground,  upon 
which  the  stout,  matron-like  mistress,  with  a  tame 
parrot  perched  upon  her  shoulder,  sat  sewing  with 
two  pretty-looking  mulatto-girls.  The  master,  coolly 
clad  in  shirt  and  drawers,  the  former  loose  about  his 
neck,  lay  in  his  hammock,  smoking  a  long  gaudily 
painted  wooden  pipe.  The  household  utensils — earth- 
en-ware jars,  water-pots,  and  sauce-pans  —  lay  at  one 
end,  near  which  was  a  wood-fire,  with  the  ever-ready 


MURA  INDIANS.  417 

coffee-pot  simmering  on  the  top  of  a  clay  tripod.  A 
large  shed  stood  a  short  distance  off,  embowered  in  a 
grove  of  banana,  papaw,  and  mango  trees  ;  and  under 
it  were  the  troughs,  ovens,  sieves,  and  other  appa- 
ratus, for  the  preparation  of  mandioc.  The  cleared 
space  around  the  house  was  only  a  few  yards  in 
extent:  beyond  it  lay  the  cacao-plantations,  which 
stretched  on  each  side  parallel  to  the  banks  of  the 
river.  There  was  a  path  through  the  forest,  which 
led  to  the  mandioc-fields,  and,  several  miles  beyond, 
to  other  houses  on  the  banks  of  an  interior  channel. 
We  were  kindly  received,  as  is  always  the  case  when 
a  stranger  visits  these  out-of-the-way  habitations ;  the 
people  being  invariably  civil  and  hospitable.  We  had 
a  long  chat,  took  coffee;  and,  on  departing,  one  of  the 
daughters  sent  a  basketful  of  oranges,  for  our  use, 
down  to  the  canoe." 

MURA    INDIANS. 

"  On  the  9th  of  January,  we  arrived  at  Matari,  a 
miserable  little  settlement  of  Mura  Indians.      Here 

we  again  anchored,  and  went  ashore.    The  place  con- 

tt 

sisted  of  about  twenty  slightly  built  mud-hovels,  and 
had  a  most  forlorn  appearance,  notwithstanding  the 
luxuriant  forest  in  its  rear.  The  absence  of  the  usual 

27 


418  ELDORADO, 

cultivated  trees  and  plants  gave  the  place  a  naked 
and  poverty-stricken  aspect.  I  entered  one  of  the 
hovels,  where  several  women  were  employed  cooking 
a  meal.  Portions  of  a  large  fish  were  roasting  over  a 
fire  made  in  the  middle  of  the  low  chamber;  and  the 
entrails  were  scattered  about  the  floor,  on  which  the 
women,  with  tUeir  children,  were  squatted.  These 
had  a  timid,  distrustful  expression  of  countenance; 

and   their  bodies  were   begrimed  with   black  mud, 

• 
which  is   smeared    over    the    skin    as   a   protection 

against  musquitoes.  The  children  were  naked :  the 
women  wore  petticoats  of  coarse  cloth,  stained  in 
blotches  with  murixi,  a  dye  made  from  the  bark  of 
a  tree.  One  of  them  wore  a  necklace  of  monkey's 
teeth.  There  were  scarcely  any  household  utensils : 
the  place  was  bare,  with  the  exception  of  two  dirty 
grass  hammocks  hung  in  the  corners.  I  missed  the 
usual  mandioc-sheds  behind  the  house,  with  their 
surrounding  cotton,  cacao,  coffee,  and  lemon  trees. 
Two  or  three  young  men  of  the  tribe  were  lounging 
about  the  low,  open  doorway.  They  were  stoutly- 
built  fellows,  but  less  well-proportioned  than  the 

^ 

semi-civilized  Indians  of  the  Lower  Amazons  gen- 
erally are.  The  gloomy  savagery,  filth,  and  pov- 
erty of  the  people  in  this  place  made  me  feel 


MARAUA   TRIBE.  419 

quite  melancholy;  and  I  was  glad  to  return  to  the 
canoe.7' 

MARAUA   TRIBE. 

A  pleasanter  picture  is  presented  by  the  Indians 
of  the  Maraua  tribe.  Our  traveller  thus  describes  a 
visit  to  them :  — 

"  Our  longest  trip  was  to  some  Indian  houses,  a 
distance  of  fifteen  or  eighteen  miles  up  the  Sapo ; 
a  journey  made  with  one  Indian  paddler,  and  occupy- 
ing a  whole  day.  The  stream  is  not  more  than  forty 
or  fifty  yards  broad :  its  waters  are  dark  in  color,  and 
flow,  as  in  all  these  small  rivers,  partly  under  shade, 
between  two  lofty  walls  of  forest.  We  passed,  in 
ascending,  seven  habitations,  most  of  them  hidden 
in  the  luxuriant  foliage  of  the  banks ;  their  sites 
being  known  only  by  small  openings  in  the  compact 
wall  of  forest,  and  the  presence  of  a  canoe  or  two 
tied  up  in  little  shady  ports.  The  inhabitants  are 
chiefly  Indians  of  the  Maraud  tribe,  whose  original 
territory  comprises  all  the  by-streams  lying  between 
the  Jutahi  and  the  Jurua,  near  the  mouths  of  both 
these  great  tributaries.  They  live  in  separate  fami- 
lies, or  small  hordes ;  have  no  common  chief;  and  are 
considered  as  a  tribe  little  disposed  to  adopt  civilized 


420  ELDORADO. 

customs,  or  be  friendly  with  the  whites.  One  of  the 
houses  belonged  to  a  Juri  family ;  and  we  saw  the 
owner,  an  erect,  noble-looking  old  fellow,  tattooed,  as 
customary  with  his  tribe,  in  a  large  patch  over  the 
middle  of  his  face,  fishing,  under  the  shade  of  a  colos- 
sal tree,  with  hook  and  line.  He  saluted  us  in  the 
usual  grave  and  courteous  manner  of  the  better  sort 
of  Indians  as  we  passed  by. 

"  We  reached  the  last  house,  or  rather  two  houses, 
about  ten  o'clock,  and  spent  there  several  hours  dur- 
ing the  heat  of  the  day.  The  houses,  which  stood 
on  a  high,  clayey  bank,  were  of  quadrangular  shape, 
partly  open,  like  sheds,  and  partly  enclosed  with  rude, 
mud  walls,  forming  one  or  two  chambers.  The  inhab- 
itants, a  few  families  of  Marauds,  received  us  in  a 
frank,  smiling  manner.  None  of  them  were  tattooed: 
but  the  men  had  great  holes  pierced  in  their  ear- 
lobes,  in  which  they  insert  plugs  of  wood ;  and  their 
lips  were  drilled  with  smaller  holes.  One  of  the 
younger  men,  a  fine,  strapping  fellow,  nearly  six  feet 
high,  with  a  large  aquiline  nose,  who  seemed  to  wish 
to  be  particularly  friendly  to  me,  showed  me  the  use 
of  these  lip-holes,  by  fixing  a  number  of  little  sticks 
in  them,  and  then  twisting  his  mouth  about,  and 
going  through  a  pantomime  to  represent  defiance  in 
-the  presence  of  an  enemy. 


MARAUA   TRIBE.  421 

"  We  left  these  friendly  people  about  four  o'clock 
in  the  afternoon,  and,  in  descending  the  umbrageous 
river,  stopped,  about  half-way  down,  at  another  house, 
built  in  one  of  the  most  charming  situations  I  had  yet 
seen  in  this  country.  A  clean,  narrow,  sandy  path- 
way led  from  the  shady  port  to  the  house,  through 

V. 

a  tract  of  forest  of  indescribable  luxuriance.  The 
buildings  stood  on  an  eminence  in  the  middle  of  a 
level,  cleared  space ;  the  firm,  sandy  soil,  smooth  as 
a  floor,  forming  a  broad  terrace  round  them.  The 
owner  was  a  semi-civilized  Indian,  named  Manoel ; 
a  dull,  taciturn  fellow,  who,  together  with"  his  wife 
and  children,  seemed  by  no  means  pleased  at  being 
intruded  on  in  their  solitude.  The  family  must  have 
been  very  industrious  ;  for  the  plantations  were  very 
extensive,  and  included  a  little  of  almost  all  kinds  of 
cultivated  tropical  productions,  —  fruit-trees,  vegeta- 
bles, and  even  flowers  for  ornament.  The  silent  old 
man  had  surely  a  fine  appreciation  of  the  beauties  of 
Nature ;  for  the  site  he  had  chosen  commanded  a 
view  of  surprising  magnificence  over  the  summits  of 
the  forest ;  and,  to  give  a  finish  to  the  prospect,  he 
had  planted  a  large  number  of  banana-trees  in  the 
foreground,  thus  concealing  the  charred  and  dead 
stumps  which  would  otherwise  have  marred  the  effect 


422  ELDORATtO. 

of  the  rolling  sea  of  greenery.  The  sun  set  over  the 
tree-tops  before  we  left  this  little  Eden ;  and  the  re- 
mainder of  our  journey  was  made  slowly  and  pleas- 
antly, under  the  checkered  shade  of  the  river  banks, 
by  the  light  of  the  moon/7 

THE   FOREST. 

The  following  passage  describes  the  scenery  of 
one  of  the  peculiar  channels  by  which  the  waters 
of  the  Amazon  communicate  with  those  of  the  Para 
River :  — 

"  The  forest  wall  under  which  we  are  now  moving 
consists,  besides  palms,  of  a  great  variety  of  ordinary 
forest-trees.  From  the  highest  branches  of  these, 
down  to  the  water,  sweep  ribbons  of  climbing-plants 
of  the  most  diverse  and  ornamental  foliage  possible. 
Creeping  convolvuli  and  others  have  made  use  of  the 
slender  lianas  and  hanging  air-roots  as  ladders  to 
climb  by.  Now  and  then  appears  a  mimosa  or  other 
tree,  having  similar  fine  pinnate  foliage ;  and  thick 
masses  of  inga  border  the  water,  from  whose  branches 
hang  long  bean-pods,  of  different  shape  and  size  ac- 
cording to  the  species,  some  of  them  a  yard  in  length. 
Flowers  there  are  very  few.  I  see  now  and  then 
a  gorgeous  crimson  blossom  on  long  spikes,  orna- 


THE  LIANA.  423 

*h 

menting  the  sombre  foliage  towards  the  summits  of 
the  forest.  I  suppose  it  to  belong  to  a  climber 
of  the  Combretaccous  order.  There  are  also  a  few 
yellow  and  violet  trumpet-flowers.  The  blossoms  of 
the  ingas,  although  not  conspicuous,  are  delicately 
beautiful.  The  forest  all  along  offers  so  dense  a 
front,  that  one  never  obtains  a  glimpse  into  the 
interior  of  the  wilderness." 

THE    LIANA. 

"  The  plant  which  seems  to  the  traveller  most  curi- 
ous and  singular  is  the  liana,  a  kind  of  osier,  which 
serves  for  cordage,  and  which  is  very  abundant  in  all 
the  hot  parts  of  America.  All  the  species  of  this 
genus  have  this  in  common,  that  they  twine  around 
the  trees  and  shrubs  in  their  way,  and  after  progres- 
sively extending  to  the  branches,  sometimes  to  a  pro- 
digious height,  throw  out  shoots,  which/  declining 
perpendicularly,  strike  root  in  the  ground  beneath, 
and  rise  again  to  repeat  the  same  course  of  uncom- 
mon growth.  Other  filaments,  again,  driven  obliquely 
by  the  winds,  frequently  attach  themselves  to  con- 
tiguous trees,  and  form  a  confused  spectacle  of  cord, 
some  in  suspension,  and  others  stretched  in  every 
direction,  not  unfrequently  resembling  the  rigging  of 


424  ELDORADO. 

a  ship.  Some  of  these  lianas  are  as  thick  as  the  arm 
of  a  man  •  and  some  strangle  and  destroy  the  tree 
round  which  they  twine,  as  the  boa-constrictor  does 
its  victims.  At  times  it  happens  that  the  tree  dies 
at  the  root,  and  the  trunk  rots,  and  falls  in  powder, 
leaving  nothing  but  the  spirals  of  liana,  in  form  of  a 
tortuous  column,  insulated  and  open  to  the  day.  Thus 
Nature  laughs  to  scorn  and  defies  the  imitations  of 
Art." 

CACAO. 

"  The  Amazons  region  is  the  original  home  of  the 
principal  species  of  chocolate-tree,  —  the  theobroma 
cacao ;  and  it  grows  in  abundance  in  the  forests  of 
the  upper  river.  The  forest  here  is  cleared  before 
planting,  and  the  trees  are  grown  in  rows.  The 
smaller  cultivators  are  all  very  poor.  Labor  is 
scarce  :  one  family  generally  manages  its  own  small 
plantation  of  ten  to  fifteen  thousand  trees;  but,  at 
harvest-time,  neighbors  assist  each  other.  It  ap- 
peared to  me  to  be  an  easy,  pleasant  life :  the  work 
is  all  done  under  shade,  and  occupies  only  a  few 
weeks  in  the  year. 

"  The  cultivated  crop  appears  to  be  a  precarious 
one.  Little  or  no  care,  however,  is  bestowed  on  the 
trees ;  and  weeding  is  done  very  inefficiently.  Tho 


THE  COW-TREE.  425 

plantations  are  generally  old,  and  have  been  made  on 
the  low  ground  near  the  river,  which  renders  them 
liable  to  inundation  when  this  rises  a  few  inches 
more  than  the  average.  There  is  plenty  of  higher 
land  quite  suitable  to  the  tree ;  but  it  is  uncleared  : 
and  the  want  of  labor  and  enterprise  prevents  the 
establishment  of  new  plantations." 

THE   COW-TREE. 

"  We  had  heard  a  good  deal  about  this  tree,  and 
about  its  producing  from  its  bark  a  copious  supply  of 
milk  as  pleasant  to  drink  as  that  of  the  cow.  We  had 
also  eaten  of  its  fruit  at  Para,  where  it  is  sold  in  the 
streets  by  negro  market-women :  we  were  glad,  there- 
fore, to  see  this  wonderful  tree  growing  in  its  native 
wilds.  It  is  one  of  the  largest  of  the  forest-mon- 
archs,  and  is  peculiar  in  appearance,  on  account  of 
its  deeply-scored,  reddish,  and  ragged  bark.  A  de- 
coction of  the  bark,  I  was  told,  is  used  as  a  red  dye 
for  cloth.  A  few  days  afterward,  we  tasted  its  milk, 
which  was  drawn  from  dry  logs  that  had  been  stand- 
ing many  days  in  the  hot  sun  at  the  saw-mills.  It 
was  pleasant  with  coffee,  but  had  a  slight  rankness 
when  drunk  pure.  It  soon  thickens  to  a  glue,  which 
is  very  tenacious,  and  is  often  used  to  cement  broken 


426  ELDORADO. 

crockery.  I  was  told  that  it  was  not  safe  to  drink 
much  of  it ;  for  a  slave  had  recently  lost  his  life 
through  taking  it  too  freely. 

"  To  our  great  disappointment,  we  saw  no  flowers, 
or  only  such  as  were  insignificant  in  appearance.  I 
believe  it  is  now  tolerably  well  ascertained  that  the 
majority  of  forest-trees  in  equatorial  Brazil  have 
small  and  inconspicuous  flowers.  Flower-frequenting 
insects  are  also  rare  in  the  forest.  Of  course,  they 
would  not  be  found  where  their  favorite  food  was 
wanting.  In  the  open  country,  on  the  Lower  Ama- 
zons, flowering  trees  and  bushes  are  more  abundant ; 
and  there  a  large  number  of  floral  insects  are  at- 
tracted. The  forest -bees  in  South  America  are 
more  frequently  seen  feeding  on  the  sweet  sap  which 
exudes  from  the  trees  than  on  flowers." 


CHAPTER   XVI. 

THE  NATURALIST  ON  THE  AMAZON. 

the  16th  of  January,  the  dry  season  came  ab- 
ruptly  to  an  end.  The  sea-breezes,  which  had 
been  increasing  in  force  for  some  days,  suddenly 
ceased,  and  the  atmosphere  became  misty :  at  length, 
heavy  clouds  collected  where  a  uniform  blue  sky  had 
for  many  weeks  prevailed,  and  down  came  a  succes- 
sion of  heavy  showers,  the  first  of  which  lasted  a 
whole  day  and  night.  This  seemed  to  give  a  new 
stimulus  to  animal  life.  On  the  first  night,  there 
was  a  tremendous  uproar, — tree-frogs,  crickets,  goat- 
suckers, and  owls,  all  joining  to  perform  a  deafening 
concert.  One  kind  of  goat-sucker  kept  repeating  at 
intervals,  throughout  the  night,  a  phrase  similar  to 
the  Portuguese  words,  l  Joao  corta  pao/  —  i  John, 
cut  wood  j '  a  phrase  which  forms  the  Brazilian  name 
of  the  bird.  An  owl  in  one  of  the  trees  muttered 
now  and  then  a  succession  of  syllables  resembling 

427 


428  ELDQUADO. 

the  word  'rnurucututu.'  Sometimes  the  croaking  and 
hooting  of  frogs  and  toads  were  so  loud,  that  we  could 
not  hear  one  another's  voices  within  doors.  Swarms 
of  dragon-flies  appeared  in  the  day-time  about  the 
pools  of  water  created  by  the  rain ;  and  ants  and 
termites  came  forth  in  great  numbers." 

* 

ANTS. 

This  region  is  the  very  headquarters  and  me- 
tropolis of  .ants.  There  are  numerous  species,  differ- 
ing in  character  and  habits,  but  all  of  them  at  war 
with  man,  and  the  different  species  with  one  another. 
Our  author  thus  relates  his  observations  of  the  saiiba- 
ant :  — 

"In  our  first  walks,  we  were  puzzled  to  account 
for  large  mounds  of  earth,  of  a  different  color  from 
the  surrounding  soil,  which  were  thrown  up  in  the 
plantations  and  woods.  Some  of  them  were  very  ex- 
tensive, being  forty  yards  in  circumference,  but  not 
more  than  two  feet  in  height.  We  soon  ascertained 
that  these  were  the  work  of  the  saiibas,  being  the 
outworks,  or  domes,  which  overlie  and  protect  the 
entrances  to  their  vast  subterranean  galleries.  On 
close  examination,  I  found  the  earth  of  which  they 
are  composed  to  consist  of  very  minute  granules,  ag- 


ANTS.  429 

glomerated  without  cement,  and  forming  many  rows 
of  little  ridges  and  turrets.  The  difference  of  color 
from  the  superficial  soil  is  owing  to  their  being 
formed  of  the  undersoil  brought  up  from  a  considera- 
ble depth.  It  is  very  rarely  that  the  ants  are  seen  at 
work  on  these  mounds.  The  entrances  seem  to  be 
generally  closed  :  only  now  and  then,  when  some  par- 
ticular work  is  going  on,  are  the  galleries  opened.  In 
the  larger  hillocks,  it  would  require  a  great  amount 
of  excavation  to  get  at  the  main  galleries  ;  but  I  suc- 
ceeded in  removing  portions  of  the  dome  in  smaller 
hillocks,  and  then  I  found  that  the  minor  entrances 
converged,  at  the  depth  of  about  two  feet,  to  one 
broad,  elaborately  worked  gallery,  of  mine,  which  was 
four  or  five  inches  in  diameter. 

"  The  habit  of  the  saiiba-ant,  of  clipping  and  carry- 
ing away  immense  quantities  of  leaves,  has  long  been 
recorded  in  books  of  natural  history ;  but  it  has  not 
hitherto  been  shown  satisfactorily  to  what  use  it  ap- 
plies the  leaves.  I  discovered  this  only  after  much 
time  spent  in  investigation.  The  leaves  are  used  to 
thatch  the  domes  which  cover  the  entrances  to  their 
subterranean  dwellings,  thereby  protecting  from  the 
deluging  rains  the  young  broods  in  the  nests  be- 
neath. Small  hillocks,  covering  entrances  to  the 


430  ELDORADO. 

underground  chambers,  may  be  found  in  sheltered 
places;  and  these  are  always  thatched  with  leaves, 
mingled  with  granules  of  earth.  The  heavily-laden 
workers,  each  carrying  its  segment  of  leaf  vertically, 
the  lower  end  secured  by  its  mandibles,  troop  up,  and 
cast  their  burthens  on  the  hillock ;  another  relay  of 
laborers  place  the  leaves  in  position,  covering  them 
with  a  layer  of  earthy  granules,  which  are  brought 
one  by  one  from  the  soil  beneath. 

"  It  is  a  most  interesting  sight  to  see  the  vast 
host  of  busy,  diminutive  workers  occupied  on  this 
work.  Unfortunately,  they  choose  cultivated  trees 
for  their  purpose,  such  as  the  coffee  and  orange 
trees." 

THE  FIRE-ANT. 

"  Aveyros  may  be  called  the  headquarters  of  the 
fire-ant,  which  might  be  fittingly  termed  the  scourge 
of  this  fine  river.  It  is  found  only  on  sandy  soils,  in 
open  places,  and  seems  to  thrive  most  in  the  neigh- 
borhood of  houses  and  weedy  villages,  such  as  Avey- 
ros :  it  does  not  occur  at  all  in  the  shades  of  the 
forest.  Aveyros  was  deserted  a  few  years  before  my 
visit,  on  account  of  this  little  tormentor ;  and  the  in- 
habitants had  only  recently  returned  to  their  houses, 


THE  FIRE-ANT.  431 

thinking  its  numbers  had  decreased.  It  is  a  small 
species,  of  a  shining  reddish  color.  The  soil  of  the 
whole  village  is  undermined  by  it.  The  houses  are 
overrun  with  them :  they  dispute  every  fragment  of 
food  with  "the  inhabitants,  and  destroy  clothing  for 
the  sake  of  the  starch.  All  eatables  are  obliged  to 
be  suspended  in  baskets  from  the  rafters,  and  the 
cords  well  soaked  with  copaiba-balsam,  which  is  the 
only  thing  known  to  prevent  them  from  climbing. 
They  seem  to  attack  persons  from  sheer  malice.  If 
we  stood  for  a  few  moments  in  the  street,  even  at  a 
distance  from  their  nests,  we  were  sure  to  be  over- 
run, and  severely  punished ;  for,  the  moment  an  ant 
touched  the  flesh,  he  secured  himself  with  his  jaws, 
doubled  in  his  tail,  and  stung  with  all  his  might.  The 
sting  is  likened,  by  the  Brazilians,  to  the  puncture  of 
a  red-hot  needle.  When  we  were  seated  on  chairs  in. 
the  evenings,  in  front  of  the  house,  to  enjoy  a  chat 
with  our  neighbors,  we  had  stools  to  support  our 
feet,  the  legs  of  which,  as  well  as  those  of  the  chairs, 
were  well  anointed  with  the  balsam.  The  cords  of 
hammocks  are  obliged  to  be  smeared  in  the  same 
way,  to  prevent  the  ants  from  paying  sleepers  a 
visit." 


432  ELD  OE  ADO. 

» 

BUTTERFLIES. 

"At  Villa  Nova,  I  found  a  few  species  of  butter- 
flies which  occurred  nowhere  else  on  the  Amazons. 
In  the  broad  alleys  of  the  forest,  several  species  of 
Morpho  were  common.  One  of  these  is  a  sister-form 
to  the  Morpho  Hecuba,  and  has  been  described  under 
the  name  of  Morpho  Cisseis.  It  is  a  grand  sight  to 
see  these  colossal  butterflies  by  twos  and  threes  float- 
ing at  a  great  height  in  the  still  air  of  a  tropical 
morning.  They  flap  their  wings  only  at  long  inter- 
vals ;  for  I  have  noticed  them  to  sail  a  very  consid- 
erable distance  without  a  stroke.  Their  wing-muscles, 
and  the  thorax  to  which  they  are  attached,  are  very 
feeble  in  comparison  with  the  wide  extent  and  weight 
of  the  wings ;  but  the  large  expanse  of  these  mem- 
bers doubtless  assists  the  insects  in  maintaining  their 
aerial  course.  The  largest  specimens  of  Morpho  Cis- 
seis measure  seven  inches  and  a  half  in  expanse. 
Another  smaller  kind,  which  I  could  not  capture,  was 
of  a  pale,  silvery-blue  color ;  and  the  polished  surface 
of  its  wings  flashed  like  a  silver  speculum,  as  the 
insect  flapped  its  wings  at  a  great  elevation  in  the 
sunlight." 


THE  BIRD-CATCHING  SPIDER,  433 

THE   BIRD-CATCHING  SPIDER. 

< 

"At  Cameta,  I  chanced  to  verify  a  fact  relating  to 
the  habits  of  a  large,  hairy  spider  of  the  genus  My- 
gale,  in  a  manner  worth  recording.  The  individual 
was  nearly  two  inches  in  length  of  body;  but  the 
legs  expanded  seven  inches,  and  the  entire  body  and 
legs  were  covered  with  coarse  gray  and  reddish 
hairs.  I  was  attracted  by  a  movement  of  the  mon- 
ster on  a  tree-trunk :  ifc  was  close  beneath  a  deep 
crevice  in  the  tree,  across  which  was  stretched  a 
dense  white  web.  The  lower  part  of  the  web  was 
broken ;  and  two  small  birds,  finches,  were  entangled 
in  the  pieces.  They  were  about  the  size  of  the  Eng- 
lish siskin ;  and  I  judged  the  two  to  be  male  and 
female.  One  of  them  was  quite  dead ;  the  other  lay 
under  the  body  of  the  spider,  not  quite  dead,  and  was 
smeared  with  the  filthy  liquor,  or  saliva,  exuded  by 
the  monster.  I  drove  away  the  spider,  and  took  the 
birds ;  but  the  second  one  soon  died.  The  fact  of 
a  species  of  mygale  sallying  forth  at  night,  mounting 
trees,  and  sucking  the  eggs  and  young  of  humming- 
birds, has  been  recorded  long  ago  by  Madame  Merian 
and  Palisot  de  Beauvois ;  but,  in  the  absence  of  any 

28 


434  ELDORADO. 

confirmation,  it  has  come  to  be  discredited.  From  the 
way  the  fact  has  been  related,  it  would  appear  that  it 
had  been  derived  from  the  report  of  natives,  and  had 
not  been  witnessed  by  the  narrators.  I  found  the 
circumstance  to  be  quite  a  novelty  to  the  residents 
hereabouts. 

"  The  mygales  are  quite  common  insects.  Some 
species  make  their  cells  under  stones ;  others  form 
artificial  tunnels  in  the  earth ;  and  some  build  their 
dens  in  the  thatch  of  houses.  The  natives  call  them 
crab-spiders.  The  hairs  with  which  they  are  clothed 
come  off  when  touched,  and  cause  a  peculiar  and  al- 
most maddening  irritation.  The  first  specimen  that 
I  killed  and  prepared  was  handled  incautiously ;  and 
I  suffered  terribly  for  three  days  afterward.  I  think 
this  is  not  owing  to  any  poisonous  quality  residing  in 
the  hairs,  but  to  their  being  short  and  hard,  and  thus 
getting  into  the  fine  creases  of  the  skin.  Some  my- 
gales are  of  immense  size.  One  day,  I  saw  the  chil- 
dren belonging  to  an  Indian  family  who  collected  for 
me  with  one  of  these  monsters,  secured  by  a  cord 
round  its  waist,  by  which  they  were  leading  it  about 
the  house  as  they  would  a  dog." 


BATS.  435 

BATS. 

"At  Caripi,  near  Para,  I  was  much  troubled  by 
bats.  The  room  where  I  slept  had  not  been  used  for 
many  months,  and  the  roof  was  open  to  the  tiles  and 
rafters.  I  was  aroused  about  midnight  by  the  rush- 
ing noise  made  by  vast  hosts  of  bats  sweeping  about 
the  room.  The  air  was  alive  with  them.  They  had 
put  out  the  lamp ;  and,  when  I  relighted  it,  the  place 
appeared  blackened  with  the  impish  multitudes  that 
were  whirling  round  and  round.  After  I  had  laid 
about  well  with  a  stick  for  a  few  minutes,  they  disap- 
peared among  the  tiles;  but,  when  all  was  still  again, 
they  returned,  and  once  more  extinguished  the  light. 
I  took  no  further  notice  of  them,  and  went  to  sleep. 
The  next  night,  several  of  them  got  into  my  ham- 
mock^ I  seized  them  as  they  were  crawling  over  me, 
and  dashed  them  against  the  wall.  The  next  morn- 
ing, I  found  a  wound,  evidently  caused  by  a  bat,  on 
my  hip.  This  was  rather  unpleasant :  so  I  set  to 
work  with  the  negroes,  and  tried  to  exterminate 
them.  I  shot  a  great  many  as  they  hung  from  the 
rafters  j  and  the  negroes,  having  mounted  with  lad- 
ders to  the  roof  outside,  routed  out  from  beneath 
the  eaves  many  hundreds  of  them,  including  young 


436  ELDORADO. 

broods.  There  were  altogether  four  species.  By  far 
the  greater  number  belonged  to  the  Dysopes  perotis, 
a  species  having  very  large  ears,  and  measuring  two 
feet  from  tip  to  tip  of  the  wings.  I  was  never  at- 
tacked by  bats,  except  on  this  occasion.  The  fact  of 
their  sucking  the  blood  of  persons  sleeping,  from 
wounds  which  they  make  in  the  toes,  is  now  well 
established  ;  but  it  is  only  a  few  persons  who  are 
subject  to  this  blood-letting." 
• 

PARROTS. 

"  On  recrossing  the  river  in  the  evening,  a  pretty 
little  parrot  fell  from  a  great  height  headlong  into  the 
water  near  the  boat,  having  dropped  from  a  flock 
which  seemed  to  be  fighting  in  the  air.  One  of  the 
Indians  secured  it  for  me;  and  I  was  surprised  to  find 
the  bird  uninjured.  There  had  probably  been  a  quar- 
rel about  mates,  resulting  in  our  little  stranger  being 
temporarily  stunned  by  a  blow  on  the  head  from  the 
beak  of  a  jealous  comrade.  It  was  of  the  species 
called  by  the  natives  Maracana ;  the  plumage  green, 
with  a  patch  of  scarlet  under  the  wings.  I  wished  to 
keep  the  bird  alive,  and  tame  it;  but  all  our  efforts 
to  reconcile  it  to  captivity  were  vain :  it  refused  food, 
bit  every  one  who  went  near  it,  and  damaged  its  plu- 


PARROTS.  437 

mage  in  its  exertions  to  free  itself.  My  friends  in 
Aveyros  said  that  this  kind  of  parrot  never  became 
domesticated.  After  trying  nearly  a  week,  I  was 
recommended  to  lend  the  intractable  creature  to  an 
old  Indian  woman  living  in  the  village,  who  was  said 
to  be  a  skilful  bird- tamer.  In  two  days,  she  brought  it 
back  almost  as  tame  as  the  familiar  love-birds  of  our 
aviaries.  I  kept  my  little  pet  for  upward  of  two 
years.  It  learned  to  talk  pretty  well,  and  was  con- 
sidered quite  a  wonder,  as  being  a  bird  usually  so 
difficult  of  domestication.  I  do  not  know  what  arts 
the  old  woman  used.  Capt.  Antonio  said  she  fed  it 
with  her  saliva. 

"  Our  maracana  used  to  accompany  us  sometimes 
in  our  rambles,  one  of  the  lads  carrying  it  on  his 
head.  One  day,  in  the  middle  of  a  long  forest-road, 
it  was  missed,  having  clung  probably  to  an  overhang- 
ing bough,  and  escaped  into  the  thicket  without  the 
boy  perceiving  it.  Three  hours  afterwards,  on  our 
return  by  the  same  path,  a  voice  greeted  us  in  a  col- 
loquial tone  as  we  passed, l  Maracana ! '  We  looked 
about  for  some  time,  but  could  not  see  any  thing, 
until  the  word  was  repeated  with  emphasis,  '  Mara- 
cana ! '  when  we  espied  the  little  truant  half  con- 
cealed in  the  foliage  of  a  tree.  He  came  down,  and 


438  ELDORADO. 

delivered  himself  up,  evidently  as  much  rejoiced  at 
the  meeting  as  we  were." 

TURTLE-EGGS   AND   OIL. 

"I  accompanied  Cardozo  in  many  wanderings  on 
the  Solimoens,  or  Upper  Amazons,  during  which  we 
visited  the  praias  (sand-islands),  the  turtle-pools  in 
the  forests,  and  the  by-streams  and  lakes  in  the  great 
desert  river.  His  object  was  mainly  to  superintend 
the  business  of  digging  up  turtle-eggs  on  the  sand- 
banks ;  having  been  elected  commandante  for  the  year 
o£  the  praia-real  (royal  sand-island)  of  Shimuni,  the 
one  lying  nearest  to  Ega.  There  are  four  of  these 
royal  praias  within  the  district,  all  of  which  are  visit- 
ed annually  by  the  Ega  people,  for  the  purpose  of 
collecting  eggs,  and  extracting  oil  from  their  yolks. 
Each  has  its  commander,  whose  business  is  to  make 
arrangements  for  securing  to  every  inhabitant  an 
equal  chance  in  the  egg-harvest,  by  placing  sentinels 
to  protect  the  turtles  while  laying.  The  turtles  de- 
scend from  the  interior  pools  to  the  main  river  in 
July  and  August,  before  the  outlets  dry  up,  and  then 
seek,  in  countless  swarms,  their  favorite  sand-islands  ; 
for  it  is  only  a  few  praias  that  are  selected  by  them 
out  of  the  great  number  existing. 


TURTLE-EGGS  AND   OIL.  439 

"  We  left  Ega,  on  our  first  trip  to  visit  the  sentinels 
while  the  turtles  were  yet  laying,  on  the  26th  of  Sep- 
tember. We  found  the  two  sentinels  lodged  in  a  cor- 
ner of  the  praia,  or  sand-bank,  where  it  commences,  at 
the  foot  of  the  towering  forest-wall  of  the  island;  hav- 
ing built  for  themselves  a  little  rancho  with  poles  and 
palm-leaves.  Great  preparations  are  obliged  to  be 
taken  to  avoid  disturbing  the  sensitive  turtles,  who, 
previous  to  crawling  ashore  to  la}7,  assemble  in  great 
shoals  off  the  sand-bank.  The  men,  during  this  time, 
take  care  not  to  show  themselves,  and  warn  off  any 
fisherman  who  wishes  to  pass  near  the  place.  Their 
fires  are  made  in  a  deep  hollow  near  the  borders  of 
the  forest,  so  that  the  smoke  may  not  be  visible.  The 
passage  of  a  boat  through  the  shallow  waters  where 
the  animals  are  congregated,  or  the  sight  of  a  man,  or 
a  fire  on  the  sand-bank,  would  prevent  the  turtles 
from  leaving  the  water  that  night  to  lay  their  eggs ; 
and,  if  the  causes  of  alarm  were  repeated  once  or 
twice,  they  would  forsake  the  praia  for  some  quieter 
place.  Soon  after  we  arrived,  our  men  were  sent 
with  the  net  to  catch  a  supply  of  fish  for  supper.  In 
half  an  hour,  four  or  five  large  basketsful  were  brought 
in.  The  sun  set  soon  after  our  meal  was  cooked :  we 
were  then  obliged  to  extinguish  the  fire,  and  remove 


440  ELDORADO. 

our  supper-materials  to  the  sleeping-ground,  a  spit  of 
land  about  a  mile  off;  this  course  being  necessary  on 
account  of  the  musquitoes,  which  swarm  at  night 
on  the  borders  of  the  forest. 

"  I  rose  from  my  hammock  at  daylight,  and  found 
Cardozo  and  the  men  already  up,  watching  the  tur- 
tles. The  sentinels  had  erected  for  this  purpose  a 
stage  about  fifty  feet  high,  on  a  tall  tree  near  their 
station,  the  ascent  to  which  was  by  a  roughly-made 
ladder  of  woody  lianas.  The  turtles  lay  their  eggs 
by  night,  leaving  the  water  in  vast  crowds,  and 
crawling  to  the  central  and  highest  part  of  the 
praia.  These  places  are,  of.  course,  the  last  to  go 
under  water,  when,  in  unusually  wet  seasons,  the 
river  rises  before  the  eggs  are  hatched  by  the  heat 
of  the  sand.  One  would  almost  believe  from  this 
that  the  animals  used  forethought  in  choosing  a 
place  ;  but  it  is  simply  one  of  those  many  instances 
in  animals  where  unconscious  habit  has  the  same 
result  as  conscious  prevision.  The  hours  between 
midnight  and  dawn  are  the  busiest.  The  turtles 
excavate,  with  their  broad-webbed  paws,  deep  holes 
in  the  fine  sand ;  the  first-comer,  in  each  case,  mak- 
ing a  pit  about  three  feet  deep,  laying  its  eggs 
(about  a  hundred  and  twenty  in  number),  and  cover- 


TURTLE-EGGS  AND   OIL.  441 

ing  them  with  sand  ;  the  next  making  its  deposit  at 
the  top  of  that  of  its  predecessor ;  and  so  on,  until 
every  pit  is  full.  The  whole  body  of  turtles  fre- 
quenting a  praia  does  not  finish  laying  in  less  than 
fourteen  or  fifteen  days,  even  when  there  is  no 
interruption.  When  all  have  done,  the  area  over 

which  they  have  excavated  is  distinguishable   from 

• 
the  rest  of  the  praia  only  by  signs  of  the  sand  having 

been  a  little  disturbed. 

"  On  arriving  at  the  edge  of  the  forest,  I  mounted 
the  sentinels7  stage  just  in  time  to  see  the  turtles 
retreating  to  the  water  on  the  opposite  side  of  the 
sand-bank  after  having  laid  their  eggs.  The  sight 
was  well  worth  the  trouble  of  ascending  the  shaky 
ladder.  They  were  about  a  mile  off;  but  the  sur- 
face of  the  sand  was  blackened  with  the  multitudes 
which  were  waddling  towards  the  river.  The  mar- 
gin of  the  praia  was  rather  steep ;  and  they  all 
seemed  to  tumble,  head-first,  down  the  declivity,  into 
the  water." 

When  the  turtles  have  finished  depositing  their 
eggs,  the  process  of  collecting  them  takes  place, 
of  which  our  author  gives  an  account  as  fol- 
lows :  — 


442  ELD OR ADO. 

THE   EGG-HARVEST. 

"  My  next  excursion  was  made  in  company  of  Se- 
nior Cardozo,  in  the  season  when  all  the  population 
of  the  villages  turns  out  to  dig  up  turtle-eggs,  and  to 
revel  on  the  praias.  Placards  were  posted  on  the 
church-doors  at  Ega,  announcing  that  the  excavation 
on  Shimuni  would  commence  on  the  17th  October. 
We  set  out  on  the  16th,  and  passed  on  the  way,  in 
our  well-manned  igarite  (or  two-masted  boat),  a  large 
number  of  people,  men,  women,  and  children,  in  ca- 
noes of  all  sizes,  wending  their  way  as  if  to  a  great 
holiday  gathering.  By  the  morning  of  the  17th,  some 
four  hundred  persons  were  assembled  on  the  borders 
of  the  sand-bank  ;  each  family  having  erected  a  rude 
temporary  shed  of  poles  and  palm-leaves  to  protect 
themselves  from  the  sun  and  rain.  Large  copper  ket- 
tles to  prepare  the  oil,  and  hundreds  of  red  earthen- 
ware jars,  were  scattered  about  on  the  sand. 

"  The  excavation  of  the  taboleiro,  collecting  the 
eggs,  and  preparing  the  oil,  occupied  four  days. 
The  commandante  first  took  down  the  names  of  all 
the  masters  of  households,  with  the  number  of  per- 
sons each  intended  to  employ  in  digging.  He  then 
exacted  a  payment  of  about  fourpence  a  head  towards 


THE  EGG-HARVEST.  443 

defraying  the  expense  of  sentinels.  The  whole  were 
then  allowed  to  go  to  the  taboleiro.  They  ranged 
themselves  round  the  circle,  each  person  armed  with 
a  paddle,  to  be  used  as  a  spade ;  and  then  all  began 
simultaneously  to  dig,  on  a  signal  being  given  —  the 
roll  of  drums — by  order  of  the  commandante.  It  was 
an  animating  sight  to  behold  the  wide  circle  of  rival 
diggers  throwing  up  clouds  of  sand  in  their  energetic 
labors,  and  working  gradually  toward  the  centre  of 
the  ring.  A  little  rest  was  taken  during  the  great 
heat  of  mid-day ;  and,  in  the  evening,  the  eggs  were 
carried  to  the  huts  in  baskets.  By  the  end  of  the 
second  day,  the  taboleiro  was  exhausted  :  large 
mounds  of  eggs,  some  of  them  four  or  five  feet  in 
height,  were  then  seen  by  the  side  of  each  hut,  the 
produce  of  the  labors  of  the  family. 

"  When  no  more  eggs  are  to  be  found,  the  mashing 
process  begins.  The  egg,  it  may  be  mentioned,  has 
a  flexible  or  leathery  shell :  it  is  quite  round,  and 
somewhat  larger  than  a  hen's  egg.  The  whole  heap 
is  thrown  into  an  empty  canoe,  and  mashed  with 
wooden  prongs  ;  but  sometimes  naked  Indians  and 
children  jump  into  the  mass,  and  tread  it  down,  be- 
smearing themselves  with  the  yolk,  and  making  about 
as  filthy  a  scene  as  can  well  be  imagined.  This  being 


444  ELDORADO. 

finished,  water  is  poured  into  the  canoe,  and  the  fatty 
mass  then  left  for  a  few  hours  to  be  heated  by  the 
sun,  on  which  the  oil  separates,  and  rises  to  the  sur- 
face. The  floating  oil  is  afterwards  skimmed  off  with 
long  spoons,  made  by  tying  large  mussel-shells  to  the 
end  of  rods,  and  purified  over  the  fire  in  copper-kettles. 
At  least  six  thousand  jars,  holding  each  three  gallons 
of  the  oil,  are  exported  annually  from  the  Upper  Ama- 
zons and  the  Madeira  to  Para,  where  it  is  used  for 
lighting,  frying  fish,  and  other  purposes." 

ELECTRIC   EELS. 

"We  walked  over  moderately  elevated  and  dry 
ground  for  about  a  mile,  and  then  descended  three 
or  four  feet  to  the  dry  bed  of  another  creek.  This 
was  pierced  in  the  same  way  as  the  former  water- 
course, with  round  holes  full  of  muddy  water.  They 
occurred  at  intervals  of  a  few  yards,  and  had  the  ap- 
pearance of  having  been  made  by  the  hands  of  man. 
As  we  approached,  I  was  Startled  at  seeing  a  num- 
ber of  large  serpent-like  heads  bobbing  above  the 
surface.  They  proved  to  be  those  of  electric  eels ; 
and  it  now  occurred  to  me  that  the  round  holes  were 
made  by  these  animals  working  constantly  round  and 
round  in  the  moist,  muddy  soil.  Their  depth  (some 


ELECTRIC  EELS.  445 

of  them  were  at  least  eight  feet  deep)  was  doubtless 
due  also  to  the  movements  of  the  eels  in  the  soft  soil, 
and  accounted  for  their  not  drying  up,  in  the  fine 
season,  with  the  rest  of  the  creek.  Thus,  while 
alligators  and  turtles  in  this  great  inundated  forest 
region  retire  to  the  larger  pools  during  the  dry 
season,  the  electric  eels  make  for  themselves  little 
ponds  in  which  to  pass  the  season  of  drought. 

"  My  companions  now  cut  each  a  stout  pole,  and 
proceeded  to  eject  the  eels  in  order  to  get  at  the 
other  fishes,  with  which  they  had  discovered  the 
ponds  to  abound.  I  amused  them  all  very  much  by 
showing  how  the  electric  shock  from  the  eels  could 
puss  from  one  person  to  another.  We  joined  hands 
in  a  line,  while  I  touched  the  biggest  and  freshest  of 
the  animals  on  the  head  with  my  hunting-knife.  We 
found  that  this  experiment  did  not  succeed  more  than 
three  times  with  the  same  eel,  when  out  of  the  water; 
for,  the  fourth  time,  the  shock  was  hardly  percep- 
tible." 


CHAPTER    XVII. 

ANIMATED   NATURE. 

r  I  iHE  number  and  variety  of  climbing  trees  in 
the  Amazons  forests  are  interesting,  taken  in 
connection  with  the  fact  of  the  very  general  ten- 
dency of  the  animals  also  to  become  climbers.  All 
the  Amazonian,  and  in  fact  all  South- American  mon- 
keys, are  climbers.  There  is  no  group  answering  to 
the  baboons  of  the  Old  World,  which  live  on  the 
ground.  The  gallinaceous  birds  of  the  country,  the 
representatives  of  the  fowls  and  pheasants  of  Asia 
and  Africa,  are  all  adapted,  by  the  position  of  the 
toes,  to  perch  on  trees ;  and  it  is  only  on  trees,  at  a 
great  height,  that  they  are  to  be  seen.  Many  other 
similar  instances  could  be  enumerated." 

M  ONKEYS . 

"  On  the  Upper  Amazons,  I  once  saw  a  tame  indi- 
vidual  of  the   Midas    leoninus,   a^  species   first   de- 

446 


MONKEYS.  447 

scribed  by  Humboldt,  which  was  still  more  playful 
and  intelligent  than  the  more  common  M.  ursulus. 
This  rare  and  beautiful  monkey  is  only  seven  inches 
in  length,  exclusive  of  the  tail.  It  is  named  leoni- 
nus  on  account  of  the  long,  brown  mane  which  hangs 
from  the  neck,  and  which  gives  it  very  much  the  ap- 
pearance of  a  diminutive  lion.  In  the  house  where 
it  was  kept,  it  was  familiar  with  every  one :  its 
greatest  pleasure  seemed  to  be  to  climb  about  the 
bodies  of  different  persons  who  entered.  The  first 
time  I  went  in,  it  ran  across  the  room  straightway  to 
the  chair  on  which  I  had  sat  down,  and  climbed  up  to 
my  shoulder :  arrived  there,  it  turned  round,  and 
looked  into  my  face,  showing  its  little  teeth,  and  chat- 
tering, as  though  it  would  say,  "  Well,  and  how  do 
you  do  ?  "  M.  de  St.  Hilaire  relates  of  a  species  of 
this  genus,  that  it  distinguished  between  different 
objects  depicted  on  an  engraving.  M.  Ardouin 
showed  it  the  portraits  of  a  cat  and  a  wasp  :  at 
these  it  became  much  terrified ;  whereas,  at  the  sight 
of  a  figure  of  a  grasshopper  or  beetle,  it  precipitated 
itself  on  the  picture,  as  if  to  seize  the  objects  there 
represented." 


448  ELDORADO. 

THE   CAIARABA. 

\ 

"  The  light-brown  caiarara  is  pretty  generally  dis- 
tributed over  the  forests  of  the  level  country.  I  saw 
it  frequently  on  the  banks  of  the  Upper  Amazons, 
where  it  was  always  a  treat  to.  watch  a  flock  leaping 
amongst  the  trees ;  for  it  is  the  most  wonderful  per- 
former in  this  line  of  the  whole  tribe.  The  troops 
consist  of  thirty  or  more  individuals,  which  travel  in 
single  file.  When  the  foremost  of  the  flock  reaches 
the  outermost  branch  of  an  unusually  lofty  tree,  he 
springs  forth  into  the  air  without  a  moment's  hesi- 
tation, and  alights  on  the  dome  of  yielding  foliage 
belonging  to  the  neighboring  tree,  maybe  fifty  feet 
beneath ;  all  the  rest  following  his  example.  They 
grasp,  on  falling,  with  hands  and  tail,  right  them- 
selves in  a  moment,  and  then  away  they  go,  along 
branch  and  bough,  to  the  next  tree. 

"  The  caiarara  is  very  frequently  kept  as  a  pet  in 
the  houses  of  natives.  I  kept  one  myself  for  about 
a  year,  which  accompanied  me  in  my  voyages,  and 
became  very  familiar,  coming  to  me  always  on  wet 
nights  to  share  my  blanket.  It  keeps  the  house 
where  it  is  kept  in  a  perpetual  uproar.  When 
alarmed  or  hungry,  or  excited  by  envy,  it  screams 


THE  CO  AIT  A.  449 

piteously.  It  is  always  making  some  noise  or  other, 
often  screwing  up  its  mouth,  and  uttering  a  succes- 
sion of  loud  notes  resembling  a  whistle.  Mine  lost 
my  favor  at.  last  by  killing,  in  one  of  his  jealous  fits, 
another  and  much  choicer  pet,  —  the  nocturnal,  owl- 
faced  monke}r.  Some  one  had  given  this  a  fruit 
which  the  other  coveted  :  so  the  two  got  to  quarrel- 
ling. The  owl-faced  fought  only  with  his  paws, 
clawing  out,  and  hissing,  like  a  cat :  the  other  soon 
obtained  the  mastery,  and,  before  I  could  interfere, 
finished  his  rival  by  cracking  its  skull  with  its  teeth. 
Upon  this  I  got  rid  of  him." 

THE   COAITA. 

"  The  coaita  is  a  large,  black  monkey,  covered 
with  coarse  hair,  and  having  the  prominent  parts  of 
the  face  of  a  tawny,  flesh-colored  hue.  The  coaitas 
are  called  by  some  French  zoologists  spider-mon- 
keys, on  account  of  the  length  and  slenderness  of 
their  body  and  limbs.  In  these  apes,  the  tail,  as  a 
prehensile  organ,  reaches  its  highest  degree  of  per- 
fection ;  and,  on  this  account,  it  would  perhaps  be 
correct  to  consider  the  coaita  as  the  extreme  devel- 
opment of  the  American  type  of  apes. 

"  The  tail  of  the  coaita  is  endowed  with  a  wonder- 

29 


450  ELDORADO.  • 

ful  degree  of  flexibility.  It  is  always  in  motion, 
coiling  and  uncoiling  like  the  trunk  of  an  elephant, 
and  grasping  whatever  comes  within  reach. 

"The  flesh  of  this  monkey  is  much  esteemed  by  the 
natives  in  this  part  of  the  country ;  and  the  military 
commandant  every  week  sends  a  negro  hunter  to 
shoot  one  for  his  table.  One  day  I  went  on  a  coaita- 
hunt,  with  a  negro-slave  to  show  me  the  way.  When 
in  the  deepest  part  of  the  ravine,  we  heard  a  rus- 
tling sound  in  the  trees  overhead  ;  and  Manoel  soon 
pointed  out  a  coaita  to  me.  There  was  something 
human-like  in  its  appearance,  as  the  lean,  shaggy 
creature  moved  deliberately  among  the  branches  at 
a  great  height.  I  fired,  but,  unfortunately,  only 
wounded  it.  It  fell,  with  a  crash,  headlong,  about 
twenty  or  thirty  feet,  and  then  caught  a  bough  with 
its  tail,  which  grasped  it  instantaneously ;  and  there 
the  animal  remained  suspended  in  mid-air.  Before 
I  could  reload,  it  recovered  itself,  and  mounted 
nimbly  to  the  topmost  branches,  out  of  the  reach 
of  a  fowling-piece,  where  we  could  perceive  the 
poor  thing  apparently  probing  the  wound  with  its 
fingers." 


SCARLET-FACED  MONKEY.  451 

THE   TAME   COAITA. 

"  I  once  saw  a  most  ridiculously  tame  coaita.  It 
was  an  old  female,  which  accompanied  its  owner,  a 
trader  on  the  river,  in  all  his  voyages.  By  way  of 
giving  me  a  specimen  of  its  intelligence  and  feeling, 
its  master  set  to,  and  rated  it  soundly,  calling  it  scamp, 
heathen,  thief,  and  so  forth,  all  through  the  copious 
Portuguese  vocabulary  of  vituperation.  The  poor 
monkey,  quietly  seated  on  the  ground,  seemed  to  be 
in  sore  trouble  at  this  display  of  anger.  It  began  by 
looking  earnestly  at  him ;  then  it  whined,  and  lastly 
rocked  its  body  to  and  fro  with  emotion,  crying 
piteously,  and  passing  its  long,  gaunt  arms  continually 
over  its  forehead ;  for  this  was  its  habit  when  ex- 
cited, and  the  front  of  the  head  was  worn  quite  bald 
in  consequence.  At  length,  its  master  altered  his 
tone.  '  It's  all  a  lie,'  my  old  woman.  '  You're  an  an- 
gel, a  flower,  a  good,  affectionate  old  creature,'  and 
so  forth.  Immediately  the  poor  monkey  ceased  its 
wailing,  and  soon  after  came  over  to  where  the  man 
sat." 

SCARLET-FACED   MONKEY. 

The  most  singular  of  the  Simian  family  in  Brazil 
are  the  scarlet-faced  monkeys,  called  by  the  Indians 


452  ELDORADO. 

Uakari,  of  which  there  are  two  varieties,  the  white 
and  red-haired.  Mr.  Bates  first  met  with  the  white- 
haired  variety  under  the  following  circumstances  :  — 

"  Early  one  sunny  morning,  in  the  year  1855,  I  saw 
in  the  streets  of  Ega  a  number  of  Indians  carrying 
on  their  shoulders  down  to  the  port,  to  be  embarked 
on  the  Upper  Amazons  steamer,  a  large  cage  made 
of  strong  lianas,  some  twelve  feet  in  length,  and  five 
in  height,  containing  a  dozen  monkeys  of  the  most  gro- 
tesque appearance.  Their  bodies  (about  eighteen 
inches  in  height,  exclusive  of  limbs)  were  clothed 
from  neck  to  tail  with  very  long,  straight,  and  shin- 
ing whitish  hair;  their  heads  were  nearly  bald, 
owing  to  the  very  short  crop  of  thin  gray  hairs  ;  and 
their  faces  glowed  with  the  most  vivid  scarlet  hue. 
As  a  finish  to  their  striking  physiognomy,  they  had 
bushy  whiskers  of  a  sandy  color,  meeting  under  the 
chin,  and  reddish  yellow  eyes.  They  sat  gravely  and 
silently  in  a  group,  and  altogether  presented  a  strange 
spectacle." 

Another  interesting  creature  is  the  owl-faced  night 
ape.  These  monkeys  are  not  only  owl-faced,  but 
their  habits  are 'those  of  the  moping  bird. 

"  They  sleep  all  day  long  in  hollow  trees,  and  come 
forth  to  prey  on  insects,  and  eat  fruits,  only  in  the 


SCARLET-FACED  MONKEY.  453 

-< 

night.  They  are  of  small  size,  the  body  being  about 
a  foot  long,  and  the  tail  fourteen  inches ;  and  are 
clothed  with  soft  gray  and  brown  fur,  similar  in  sub- 
stance  to  that  of  the  rabbit.  Their  physiognomy 
reminds  one  of  an  owl  or- tiger-cat.  The  face  is 
round,  and  encircled  by  a  ruff  of  whitish  fur  j  the  muz- 
zle is  not  at  all  prominent  j  the  mouth  and  chin  are 
small ;  the  ears  are  very  short,  scarcely  appearing 
above  the  hair  of  the  head ;  and  the  eyes  are  large, 
and  yellowish  in  color,  imparting  the  staring  expres- 
sion of  nocturnal  animals  of  prey.  The  forehead  is 
whitish,  and  decorated  with  three  black  stripes,  which, 
in  one  of  the  species,  continue  to  the  crown,  and  in 
the  other  meet  on  the  top  of  the  forehejad. 

"  These  monkeys,  although  sleeping  by  day,  are 
aroused  by  the  least  noise ;  so  that,  when  a  person 
passes  by  a  tree  in  which  a  number  of  them  are  con- 
cealed, he  is  startled  by  the  sudden  apparition  of 
a  group  of  little  striped  faces  crowding  a  hole  in  a 
trunk." 

Mr.  Bates  had  one  of  the  Nyctipithseci  for  a  pet, 
which  was  kept  in  a  box  containing  a  broad-mouthed 
glass  jar,  into  which  it  would  dive,  head  foremost, 
when  any  one  entered  the  room,  turning  round  inside, 
and  thrusting  forth  its  inquisitive  face  an  instant  after- 


454  ELDORADO. 

ward  to  stare  at  the  intruder.  The  Nyctipithecus, 
when  tamed,  renders  one  very  essential  service  to  its 
owner:  it  clears  the  house  of  bats  as  well  as  of  insect 
vermin. 

The  most  diminutive  of  the  Brazilian  monkeys  is 
the  "  Hapale  pygmseus,"  only  seven  inches  long  in 
the  body,  with  its  little  face  adorned  with  long,  brown 
whiskers,  which  are  naturally  brushed  back  over  the 
ears.  The  general  color  of  the  animal  is  brownish- 
tawny  ;  but  the  tail  is  elegantly  barred  with  black. 

Mr.  Bates  closes  his  account  by  stating  that  the 
total  number  of  species  of  monkeys  which  he  found 
inhabiting  the  margins  of  the  Upper  and  Lower  Ama- 
zons was  thirty-eight,  belonging  to  twelve  different 
genera,  forming  two  distinct  families. 

THE   SLOTH. 

"  I  once  had  an  opportunity,  in  one  of  my  excur- 
sions, of  watching  the  movements  of  a  sloth.  Some 
travellers  in  South  America  have  described  the  sloth 
as  very  nimble  in  its  native  woods,  and  have  disputed 
the  justness  of  the  name  which  has  been  bestowed 
upon  it.  The  inhabitants  of  the  Amazons  region,  how- 
ever, both  Indians  and  descendants  of  the  Portuguese, 
hold  to  the  common  opinion,  and  consider  the  sloth 


THE  SLOTH.  455 

as  the  type  of  laziness.  It  is  very  common  for  one 
native  to  call  to  another,  in  reproaching  him  for  idle- 
ness, '  Bicho  do  Embaiiba '  (beast  of  the  cecropia- 
tree) ;  the  leaves  of  the  cecropia  being  the  food  of  the 
sloth.  It  is  a  strange  sight  to  see  the  uncouth  crea- 
ture, fit  production  of  these  silent  woods,  lazily 
moving  from  branch  to  branch.  Every  movement 
betrays,  not  indolence  exactly,  but  extreme  caution. 
He  never  looses  his  hold  from  one  branch  without 
first  securing  himself  to  the  next ;  and,  when  he  does 
not  immediately  find  a  bough  to  grasp  with  the  rigid 
hooks  into  which  his  paws  are  so  curiously  trans- 
formed, he  raises  his  body,  supported  on  his  hind 
legs,  and  claws  around  in  search  of  a  fresh  foothold. 
After  watching  the  animal  for  about  half  an  hour,  I 
gave  him  a  charge  of  shot :  he  fell  with  a  terrific 
crash,  but  caught  a  bough  in  his  descent  with  his 
powerful  claws,  and  remained  suspended.  Two  days 
afterward,  I  found  the  body  of  the  sloth  on  the 
ground ;  the  animal  having  dropped,  on  the  relaxation 
of  the  muscles,  a  few  hours  after  death.  In  one  of 
our  voyages,  I  saw  a  sloth  swimming  across  a  river 
at  a  place  where  it  was  probably  three  hundred  yards 
broad.  Our  men  caught  the  beast,  and  cooked  and 
ate  him." 


456  ELDORADO. 

THE  ANACONDA. 

11  We  had  an  unwelcome  visitor  while  at  anchor  in 
the  port.  I  was  awakened  a  little  after  midnight,  as 
I  lay  in  my  little  cabin,  by  a  heavy  blow  struck  at  the 
sides  of  the  canoe  close  to  my  head,  succeeded  by  the 
sound  of  a  weighty  body  plunging  in  the  water.  I 
got  up  ;  but  all  was  quiet  again,  except  the  cackle  of 
fowls  in  our  hen-coop,  which  hung  over  the  side  of 
the  vessel,  about  three  feet  from  the  cabin-door. 
Next  morning  I  found  my  poultry  loose  about  the 
canoe,  and  a  large  rent  in  the  bottom  of  the  hen-coop, 
which  was  about  two  feet  from  the  surface  of  the 
water.  A  couple  of  fowls  were  missing. 

"  Antonio  said  the  depredator  was  the  sucumju,  the 
Indian  name  for  the  anaconda,  or  great  water-ser- 
pent, which  had  for  months  past  been  haunting  this 
part  of -the  river,  and  had  carried  off  many  ducks  and 
fowls  from  the  ports  of  various  houses.  I  was  in- 
clined to  doubt  the  fact  of  a  serpent  striking  at  its 
prey  from  the  water,  and  thought  an  alligator  more 
likely  to  be  the  culprit,  although  we  had  not  yet  met 
with  alligators  in  the  river.  Some  days  afterward, 
the  young  men  belonging  to  the  different  settle- 
ments agreed  together  to  go  in  search  of  the  ser- 


ALLIGATORS.  457 

pents.  They  began  in  a  systematic  manner,  forming 
two  parties,  each  embarked  in  three  or  four  canoes, 
and  starting  from  points  several  miles  apart,  whence 
they  gradually  approximated,  searching  all  the  little 
inlets  on  both  sides  of  the  river.  The  reptile  was 
found  at  last,  sunning  itself  on  a  log  at  the  mouth  of 
a  muddy  rivulet,  and  despatched  with  harpoons.  I 
saw  it  the  day  after  it  was  killed.  It  was  not  a  very 
large  specimen,  measuring  only  eighteen  feet  nine 
inches  in  length,  and  sixteen  inches  in  circumference 
at  the  widest  part  of  the  body."  Bancroft  Libraf* 

ALLIGATORS. 

"  Our  rancho  was  a  large  one,  and  was  erected  in  a 
line  with  the  others,  near  the  edge  of  the  sand-bank, 
which  sloped  rather  abruptly  to  the  water.  During 
the  first  week,  the  people  were  all  more  or  less 
troubled  by  alligators.  Some  half-dozen  full-grown 
ones  were  in  attendance  off  the  praia,  floating  about 
on  the  lazily-flowing,  muddy  water.  The  dryness  of 
the  weather  had  increased  since  we  left  Shimuni, 
the  currents  had  slackened,  and  the  heat  in  the  mid- 
dle of  the  day  was  almost  insupportable.  But  no  one 
could  descend  to  bathe  without  being  advanced  upon 
by  one  or  other  of  these  hungry  monsters.  There 


ELDORADO. 

was  much  offal  cast  into  the  river ;  and  this,  of  course, 
attracted  them  to  the  place.  Every  day,  these  visitors 
became  bolder :  at  length,  they  reached  a  pitch  of 
impudence  that  was  quite  intolerable.  Cardozo  had 
a  poodle-dog  named  Carlito,  which  some  grateful 
traveller  whom  he  had  befriended  had  sent  him  from 
Rio  Janeiro.  He  took  great  pride  in  this  dog,  keep- 
ing it  well  sheared,  and  preserving  his  coat  as  white 
as  soap  and  water  could  make  it.  We  slept  in  our 
rancho,  in  hammocks  slung  between  the  outer  posts ; 
a  large  wood  fire  (fed  with  a  kind  of  wood  abun- 
dant on  the  banks  of  the  river,  which  keeps  alight  all 
night)  being  made  in  the  middle,  by  the  side  of 
which  slept  Carlito  on  a  little  mat.  One  night,  I  was 
awoke  by  a  great  uproar.  It  was  caused  by  Cardozo 
hurling  burning  firewood  with  loud  curses  at  a  huge 
cayman,  which  had  crawled  up  the  bank,  and  passed 
beneath  my  hammock  (being  nearest  the  water) 
towards  the  place  where  Carlito  lay.  The  dog  raised 
the  alarm  in  time.  The  reptile  backed  out,  and  tum- 
bled down  the  bank  into  the  river  ;  the  sparks  from 
the  brands  hurled  at  him  flying  from  his  bony  hide. 
Cardozo  threw  a  harpoon  at  him,  but  without  doing 
him  any  harm." 


THE  PUMA.— THE  GREAT  ANT-EATER.  459 

THE   PUMA. 

"  One  day;  I  was  searching  for  insects  in  the  bark 
of  a  fallen  tree,  when  I  saw  a  large,  cat-like  animal 
advancing  towards  the  spot.  It  came  within  a  dozen 
yards  before  perceiving  me.  I  had  no  weapon  with 
me  but  an  old  chisel,  and  was  getting  ready  to  defend 
myself  if  it  should  make  a  spring ;  when  it  turned 
round  hastily,  arid  trotted  off.  I  did  not  obtain  a  very 
distinct  view  of  it ;  but  I  could  see  its  color  was  that 
of  the  puma,  or  American  lion,  although  it  was 
rather  too  small  for  that  species. 

"  The  puma  is  not  a  common  animal  in  the  Amazons 
forests.  I  did  not  see  altogether  more  than  a  dozen 
skins  in  the  possession  of  the  natives.  The  fur  is  of 
a  fawn-color.  The  hunters  are  not  at  all  afraid  of  it, 
and  speak  in  disparaging  terms  of  its  courage.  Of 
the  jaguar  they  give  a  very  different  account." 

THE    GREAT    ANT-EATER. 

"  The  great  ant-eater,  tamandua  of  the  natives, 
was  not  uncommon  here.  After  the  first  few  weeks 
of  residence,  I  was  short  of  fresh  provisions.  The 
people  of  the  neighborhood  had  sold  me  all  the  fowls 
they  could  spare.  I  had  not  yet  learned  to  cut  the 


460  ELDORADO. 

stale  and  stringy  salt  fish  which  is  the  staple  food  of 
these  places ;  and  for  several  days  I  had  lived  on 
rice-porridge,  roasted  bananas,  and  farinha.  Florinda 
asked  me  whether  I  could  eat  tamandua.  I  told  her 
almost  any  thing  in  the  shape  of  flesh  would  be  ac- 
ceptable :  so  she  went  the  next  day  with  an  old 
negro  named  Antonio,  and  the  dogs,  and,  in  the  even- 
ing, brought  one  of  the  animals.  The  meat  was 
stewed,  and  turned  out  very  good,  something  like 
goose  in  flavor.  The  people  of  Caripi  would  not 
touch  a  morsel,  saying  it  was  not  considered  fit  to  eat 
in  those  parts.  I  had  read,  however,  that  it  was  an 
article  of  food  in  other  countries  of  South  America. 
During  the  next  two  or  three  weeks,  whenever  we 
were  short  of  fresh  meat,  Antonio  was  always  ready, 
for  a  small  reward,  to  get  me  a  tamandua. 

"  The  habits  of  the  animal  are  now  pretty  well  known. 
It  has  an  excessively  long,  slender  muzzle,  and  a 
worm-like,  extensile  tongue.  Its  jaws  are  destitute  of 
teeth.  The  claws  are  much  elongated,  and  its  gait 
is  very  awkward.  It  lives  on  the  ground,  and  feeds 
on  termites,  or  white  ants ;  the  long  claws  being  em- 
ployed to  pull  in  pieces  the  solid  hillocks  made  by  the 
insects,  and  the  long  flexible  tongue  to  lick  them  up 
from  the  crevices." 


THE  JAGUAR.  401 

\ 

THE   JAGUAR. 

Our  traveller,  though  he  resided  long  and  in  vari- 
ous parts  of  the  Amazon  country,  never  saw  there  a 
jaguar.  How  near  he  came  to  seeing  one  appears 
in  the  following  extract.  This  animal  is  the  nearest 
approach  which  America  presents  to  the  leopards  and 
tigers  of  the  Old  World. 

"  After  walking  about  half  a  mile,  we  came  upon  a 
dry  water-course,  where  we  observed  on  the  margin 
of  a  pond  the  fresh  tracks  of  a  jaguar.  This  dis- 
covery was  hardly  made,  when  a  rush  was  heard 
amidst  the  bushes  on  the  top  of  a  sloping  bank,  on 
the  opposite  side  of  the  dried  creek.  We  bounded 
forward :  it  was,  however,  too  late  ;  for  the  animal  had 
sped  in  a  few  minutes  far  out  of  our  reach.  It  was 
clear  we  had  disturbed  on  our  approach  the  jaguar 
while  quenching  his  thirst  at  the  water-hole.  A  few 
steps  farther  on,  we  saw  the  mangled  remains  of  an 
alligator.  The  head,  fore-quarters,  and  bony  shell, 
were  all  that  remained :  but  the  meat  was  quite  fresh, 
and  there  were  many  footmarks  of  the  jaguar  around 
the  carcass;  so  that  there  was  no  doubt  this  had 
formed  the  solid  part  of  the  animal's  breakfast." 


462  ELD  OK  ADO. 

PARA. 

"  I  arrived  at  Para  on  the  17th  of  March,  1859, 
after  an  absence  in  the  interior  of  seven  ye'ars  and 
a  half.  My  old  friends,  English,  American,  and  Bra- 
zilian, scarcely  knew  me  again,  but  all  gave  me  a 
very  warm  welcome.  I  found  Para  greatly  changed 
and  improved.  It  was  no  longer  the  weedy,  ruinous, 
village-looking  place  that  it  had  appeared  when  I  first 
knew  it  in  1848.  The  population  had  been  .increased 
to  twenty  thousand  by  an  influx  of  Portuguese,  Ma- 
deiran,  and  German  immigrants  ;  and,  for  many  years 
past,  the  provincial  government  had  spent  their  con- 
siderable surplus  revenue  in  beautifying  the  city. 
The  streets,  formerly  unpaved,  or  strewed  with  stones 
and  sand,  were  now  laid  with  concrete  in  a  most 
complete  manner  :  all  the  projecting  masonry  of  the 
irregularly-built  houses  had  been  cleared  away,  and 
the  buildings  made  more  uniform.  Most  of  the  dilap- 
idated houses  were  replaced  by  handsome  new  edi- 
fices, having  long  and  elegant  balconies  fronting  the 
first  floors,  at  an  elevation  of  several  feet  above 
the  roadway.  The  large  swampy  squares  had  been 
drained,  weeded,  and  planted  with  rows  of  almond 
and  other  trees ;  so  that  they  were  now  a  great  orna- 


PARA.  463 

ment  to  the  city,  instead  of  an  eye-sore  as  they  for- 
merly were.  Sixty  public  vehicles,  light  cabriolets, 
some  of  them  built  in  Para,  now  plied  in  the  streets,  in- 
creasing much  the  animation  of  the  beautified  squares, 
streets,  and  avenues.  I  was  glad  to  see  several  new 
book-sellers'  shops;  also  a  fine  edifice  devoted  to  a 
reading-room,  supplied  with  periodicals,  globes,  and 
maps ;  and  a  circulating  library.  There  were  now 
many  printing-offices,  and  four  daily  newspapers. 
The  health  of  the  place  had  greatly  improved  since 
1850,  —  the  year  of  the  yellow-fever;  and  Para  was 
now  considered  no  longer  dangerous  to  new-comers. 

"  So  much  for  the  improvements  visible  in  the 
place  ;  and  now  for  the  dark  side  of  the  picture.  The 
expenses  of-  living  had  increased  about  fourfold ;  a 
natural  consequence  of  the  demand  for  labor  and  for 
native  products  of  all  kinds  having  augmented  in 
greater  ratio  than  the  supply,  in  consequence  of 
large  arrivals  of  non-productive  residents,  and  con- 
siderable importations  of  money,  on  account  of  the 
steamboat-company  and  foreign  merchants. 

"At  length,  on  the  2d  of  June,  I  left  Para,— 
probably  forever.  I  took  a  last  view  of  the  glorious 
forest  for  which  I  had  so  much  love,  and  to  explore 
which  I  had  devoted  so  many  years.  The  saddest 


464  ELDORADO. 

hours  I  recollect  ever  to  have  spent  were  those  of 
the  succeeding  night,  when,  the  pilot  having  left  us 
out  of  sight  of  land,  though  within  the  mouth  of  the 
river,  waiting  for  a  wind,  I  felt  that  the  last  link 
which  connected  me  with  the  land  of  so  many  pleas- 
ing recollections  was  broken." 


THE     END. 


PRESS  OF  GKO.  C.  RAXD  &  AVKRY,  No.  3,  CORXHILL,  BOSTOW. 


